Innocent and guilty: Child soldiers as interstitial and tactical agents

Abstract

Child soldiers are increasingly used in modern warfare. However, the very concept of a child soldier contradicts established representations of childhood and their associated norms. The author argues that young warriors occupy interstitial social spaces—being caught between the adult and juvenile worlds—which condition their lifestyles. In these ambivalent spaces, child soldiers are not devoid of agency; being both innocent and guilty, they are “tactical actors.”