Ethnic Discrimination In The Kite Runner

Throughout Afghanistan, the variety of ethnicities combined with the personal beliefs of each ethnic group, has lead to ethnic tensions and as a result ethnic discrimination. In The Kite Runner, ethnic cleansing is seen as Hazara characters are discriminated against by Pashtuns, who constitute the majority in Afghanistan. In one occasion we see this ethnic discrimination take place, in an assault committed by Assef, a Pashtun, against Hassan, a Hazara. Not only was it demoralizing for Hassan, but it was Assef’s way to make Hassan feel inferior. As seen in The Kite Runner, with the persecution of Hazaras, ethnic cleansing and discrimination occur throughout the Afghan world, as a way to target ethnic groups, who are deemed inferior by social,

“Dispatches: Afghan Killings Highlight Risks to Ethnic Hazaras.” Human Rights Watch, 13 November 2015. Accessed 24 April, 2018. Web. Ahmad Shuja, the writer of this article, is a writer who is devoted to news occuring in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. He works for the Foundation for Afghanistan, as well, which has given him insight into the ethnic discrimination seen in Afghanistan. Despite the number of casualties experienced over the past year in Afghanistan, he writes, these ethnic killings, most recently, have caused a large amount of protesting. The first killing occurred when seven Shia Hazara victims were kidnapped and they were later found murdered, angering certain Afghans. Protesters began to focus on fighting for security in their country, which has declined over the years. The writing also discusses a number of other recent Hazara massacres which are all forms of ethnic cleansing. The Hazaras are being targeted by the radical regimes, because they are different ethnically, socially, and religiously. Throughout the article, the examples of ethnic discrimination shown are all related to the persecution of Hazaras. Similar to what is seen in The Kite Runner, the Hazaras constantly face discrimination and as a result they are assaulted, persecuted, and

Racial Discrimination Towards the Hazaras as Reflected in Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner. MA Thesis, Diponegoro University, 2016. Accessed 24 April 2018. Fadlilah Satya Handayani, the writer of this thesis paper, is a student at Diponegoro University, in Semarang, Indonesia. Her research of the topic, shown through the credible sources listed at the end of the paper, allows the reader to know this is a reputable source. She discusses the racial discrimination seen in The Kite Runner, and the causes behind the intense dislike of Hazaras. The two main causes of discrimination are related to social structural factors, which are influenced by an individual’s appearance and cultural beliefs, and social psychological factors, which are prejudice, a preconceived opinion of a person not based on reason, and stereotypes, an oversimplified grouping of individuals based on ethnicity, or other characteristic. The writing highlights the social division seen between Hazaras and Pashtuns; most noticeably they are different in their wealth. The Hazaras are poor while the Pashtuns are rich and wealthy which, in the end, will create conflicts between each class. In The Kite Runner, these divisions create prejudice and stereotypes of the Hazara ethnic group, which are causes for Amir and Hassan’s relationship to be complicated. The article’s explanation of the divisions between ethnic groups can support the thesis by explaining the unconscious bias against Hazaras