Jennie E. Burnet

Jennie E. Burnet is an Associate Professor in the Global Studies Institute at Georgia State University. She holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2005) and a B.A. in French and Comparative Literature from Boston University (1994). Previously, she served as an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Louisville. Her research focuses on war, genocide, gender roles, and post-conflict resilience in East Africa, particularly Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Her work examines the social and psychological impacts of violence, memory politics, and women’s agency in post-genocide societies. Notable contributions include her award-winning book Genocide Lives in Us: Women, Memory & Silence in Rwanda (2012), which received the Elliot Skinner Award (2013). She is Principal Investigator on a National Science Foundation grant studying rescuer behavior in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

• Education:
  • Ph.D. in Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2005
  • B.A. in French and Comparative Literature, Boston University, 1994

Research themes include gender-based violence, transitional justice, and women’s roles in democratization. Her recent work explores organized resistance during genocide, long-term psychological effects of conflict, and women’s social movements in post-conflict environments. She has advised on policy for organizations like CARE-International and served on boards for Amnesty International and Rwanda Initiative for Sustainable Development.

Her publications analyze topics such as gender quotas in Rwanda, the cultural consequences of genocide, and the intersection of ethnicity and gender. Awards include recognition for her groundbreaking work on survivor narratives and memory politics.