<p>December 11, 2006</p><p>Dear Parent or Guardian: </p><p>Three of the goals of our World Cultures classes are</p><p>1) to understand the circumstances of the human condition around the world; 2) to understand how an individual can influence his/her world; 3) to do research and share the findings.</p><p>As part of our unit on Africa, students will be working on both of these goals by watching a movie and researching the real events of genocides that have taken place since the Holocaust. </p><p>The movie we will be viewing is “Hotel Rwanda”. This PG-13 movie was released in 2004 and has won numerous awards. According to pluggedinonline.org, </p><p>“Heroes are all too often manufactured in movies. Paul Rusesabagina is not such a contrivance. Based on his unbelievably noble actions in 1994 when the Hutus were slaughtering the Tutsis in the tiny African country of Rwanda, Hotel Rwanda shows how one man—even a terrified one—can literally save the world (or at least his portion of it). </p><p>Paul is managing the upscale Hotel Milles Collines in the city of Kigali when the genocide begins. He is Hutu. His wife is not. And in the beginning he is only willing to protect his own family. His mind changes rapidly as the atrocities escalate. And he turns the hotel into a refugee camp of sorts, using beer, expensive jewelry, lots of cash, and mountains of courage and quick thinking to secure the survival of more than 1,200 souls.” http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0002029.cfm</p><p>Because of its subject matter, the movie does have some rather intense scenes and therefore, I am asking parental permission for students to view the movie in class. I would encourage you to preview the movie - especially if you feel your child may have a difficult time dealing with the content. We will be watching the movie in late December.</p><p>Please complete the following questionnaire and have your child return it to me by Dec 18th. </p><p>Sincerely,</p><p>Brendon Mostert ([email protected])</p><p>My student’s name is ______</p><p>I have read the above letter. (Please indicate your choice and sign.)</p><p>____ I approve of my child watching Hotel Rwanda. ______I prefer that my child complete an alternate assignment. ______</p><p>___ I have seen Hotel Rwanda. Comments: ___ I have not seen Hotel Rwanda.</p>