Dangerous Memory: Contrasting Public and Private Memories of the Rwandan Genocide Using Hutus in the United States

In Rwandan genocidal discourse, there is the vast memory of Tutsi deaths in the public domain but less for the Hutu. In many ways, Hutus are grouped together as genocidaires even though some of them were victims of the genocide. Privately, individualized accounts of Hutus possibly points to a potential disconnect between the public memory of the genocide and personalized accounts. Perhaps, a greater deal of focus on private memory is necessary to delve into the complexities. Individual narratives are useful in providing answers to questions regarding political, societal, and economic contexts of mass atrocities such as genocides. Through memory scholarship, a diversification of public understanding courtesy of personal stories is possible. An acknowledgment of other stories does not minimize conventional stories but open up spaces for more inclusive discourses.