Becoming Rwandan

Education, Reconciliation, and the Making of a Post-Genocide Citizen

By S. Garnett Russell

SERIES: Genocide, Political Violence, Human Rights

Rutgers University Press

In the aftermath of the genocide, the Rwandan government has attempted to use the education system in order to sustain peace and shape a new generation of Rwandans. Their hope is to create a generation focused on a unified and patriotic future rather than the ethnically divisive past. Yet, the government’s efforts to manipulate global models around citizenship, human rights, and reconciliation to serve its national goals have had mixed results, with new tensions emerging across social groups. Becoming Rwandan argues that although the Rwandan government utilizes global discourses in national policy documents, the way in which teachers and students engage with these global models distorts the intention of the government, resulting in unintended consequences and undermining a sustainable peace.

Interesting and informative, Becoming Rwandan brings forth a new set of voices that adds to our understanding of post-genocide nation-building in Rwanda. Molly Sundberg, author of Training for Model Citizenship

Engaging, interesting, and well-written, Becoming Rwandan offers an original perspective on education and peacebuilding in Rwanda.' Julia Paulson, editor of Education and Reconciliation

Touching upon several topics—the role of education in building peace, the use of education in Rwanda specifically, and the failure to achieve true peace when politics enters into education—this work will be illuminating for those interested in education, genocide studies, and transitional justice. Recommended.'
Choice

This book is a must-read for practitioners and scholars exploring the effects of education policy in fragile contexts under a state-driven peacebuilding project. International Journal of Human Rights Education

Interesting and informative, Becoming Rwandan brings forth a new set of voices that adds to our understanding of post-genocide nation-building in Rwanda. Molly Sundberg, author of Training for Model Citizenship

Engaging, interesting, and well-written, Becoming Rwandan offers an original perspective on education and peacebuilding in Rwanda.' Julia Paulson, editor of Education and Reconciliation

Touching upon several topics—the role of education in building peace, the use of education in Rwanda specifically, and the failure to achieve true peace when politics enters into education—this work will be illuminating for those interested in education, genocide studies, and transitional justice. Recommended.'
Choice

This book is a must-read for practitioners and scholars exploring the effects of education policy in fragile contexts under a state-driven peacebuilding project. International Journal of Human Rights Education

S. GARNETT RUSSELL is an assistant professor of international and comparative education and the director of the George Clement Bond Center for African Education at Teachers College, Columbia University in New York.

Contents
List of Abbreviations
1 Introduction
2 The Role of Education in Transitional Justice, Peacebuilding, and Reconciliation
3 Constructing Citizenship and a Post-Genocide Identity
4 Using and Abusing Human Rights Norms
5 Addressing the Genocide and Promoting Reconciliation
6 The Potential and Limitations of Education for Peacebuilding
Appendix 1: Research Methods and Data Analysis
Appendix 2: National Policy Documents, Curricula, and Textbooks
Acknowledgments
Notes
References
Index

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