Crimes Against the Future: Children, Genocide, and the Struggle for “Never Again”

May 6, 2025

Crimes Against the Future: Children, Genocide, and the Struggle for “Never Again”

“When you listen to a witness, you become a witness.” - Elie Wiesel

Genocide is a deliberate crime not only against a people’s present but against its future. In every instance, children are deeply and uniquely affected—whether as victims, witnesses, survivors, or, at times, as coerced participants. The intergenerational consequences of such violence linger long after the atrocities end, shaping the trajectories of individuals, families, and entire societies.

This webinar will explore the place of children in genocidal ideologies and the role they play in the post-genocide journey of justice, memory, and healing. Rwanda offers a compelling case study: Thirty-one years ago, the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi claimed over a million lives. Of those killed, an estimated 53.7% were under the age of 24. After the genocide, Rwanda had among the highest proportions of child-headed families in the world—some 42,000 households struggling to raise an estimated 101,000 children. 90% of all surviving children had experienced the death of a close relative, and over half of the one million refugees in neighboring countries were under the age of 15. The violence extended beyond physical loss. More than 350,000 women were raped—approximately 67% between the ages of 14 and 25—and over 10,000 children were estimated to have been born of rape. In addition, at least 2,000 minors were incarcerated for genocide-related crimes.

Today, Rwanda has a median age of 20. This demographic reality makes clear that the work of memory, healing, justice, and genocide prevention must be intergenerational by design. Using Rwanda as a central case study, panelists will reflect on children’s experiences during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, the intergenerational transmission of trauma, and how young people are engaged in post-genocide recovery and peacebuilding. By centering children and youth in these conversations, the webinar aims to foster deeper reflection on how societies reckon with past atrocities while building resilience and a more just future across generations.

View articles, reports, books, and other resources related to the webinar.

Participants

Zachary D. Kaufman

Zachary D. Kaufman is a professor of law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and an expert on international and criminal law, transitional justice, and the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. He has worked at three international criminal tribunals, including the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and in all three branches of the U.S. government. From 2001 to 2015, he led efforts to build Rwanda’s first public library. A Marshall Scholar and Yale Law graduate, he has authored over 45 publications and is currently working on his fourth book.

Sandrine Mugenga Irankunda

Sandrine Mugenga Irankunda is a Ph.D. candidate in African Studies at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, focusing on genocide and large-scale violence in Africa. Her research explores the historical, political, and cultural forces behind atrocities and the role of memory in shaping reconciliation and identity. She is a fellow at the International Policy Scholars Consortium and Network and has led workshops and panels on genocide education and prevention. Actively engaged with the Rwandan community in the U.S., she initiated Atlanta’s annual commemoration of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi and advocates for meaningful remembrance and education.

Mukunde Gustave Mukurarinda

Mukunde Gustave "Gus" Mukurarinda is a survivor of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. He has dedicated himself to educating the world about the genocide's lasting impact, as illustrated in his memoir The Snowfall (2025), which blends personal experience with historical context. Told from the perspective of an 11-year-old, his narrative honors the victims, the heroes of the Rwandan Patriotic Front-Inkotanyi soldiers, and the resilience of survivors, urging remembrance as a foundation for peace, unity, and compassion.

Omar Ndizeye

Omar Ndizeye is an educator, author, public speaker, and cultural memory scholar. His research focuses on sites of memory, musealization, cultural mourning, and memory representations in post-genocide Rwanda. In 2020, he published a memoir titled Life and Death in Nyamata: Memoir of a Boy in Rwanda’s Darkest Church through Amsterdam Publishers. He was also featured in the edited volume In the Shadow of Genocide: Memory, Justice, and Transformation in Rwanda, published by Routledge in 2023. In 2024, Ndizeye co-published “Memorial Work and Burial Sites: Rwanda’s Unfinished Memory Work” in Memory Studies.

Ian Manzi (moderator)

Ian S. Manzi (G’23) is the program manager for the Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues at Georgetown University. His work focuses on international development, education, and child protection, with expertise in strategic planning, research, and project implementation for social impact. A graduate of Georgetown’s Master of Public Policy program, Manzi previously worked at Rwanda’s Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village and co-founded Critical Thinking for P.E.A.C.E., a youth peace education initiative. He has also served as a mentor and trainer for the U.S. State Department’s Pan-African Youth Leadership Program.