ABSTRACT
In human societies, social boundaries distinguish a “them” in front of which an “us” can be situated. Some individuals, however, may feel like they belong to neither “us” nor “them”. In Burundi’s social landscape, Hutu and Tutsi represent two main groups. Some individuals seem to find themselves in a sort of interstice in between these groups. These are Tutsi former internally displaced persons (IDPs) who returned to living among their former Hutu neighbours on the hills and Hutu IDPs who live in a predominantly Tutsi IDP camp. This chapter explores the ways in which the perceptions and self-perceptions of these individuals as “other” make their identity interstitial and how this identity is navigated in daily life. It focuses on the position of those who are situated not on either one or the other side of the boundary but on the boundary itself. An analysis of the daily struggles of these individuals sheds light on the ways in which people in the interstice challenge the boundaries on which they are situated. Ultimately, this contestation may bring about a shift in the position of well-established boundaries in the social landscape and the emergence of new forms of identity.
