Black Lives Matter: An Introspective Look

Despite all the chaos that 2020 has brought, it has been a year of reckoning and awakening. In the U.S. there has been sustained political action since the murder of George Floyd; yet I question how racism presented itself in other countries and if the Black Lives Matter movement has retained its momentum globally. Four months ago, I relocated to Paris from England in order to complete my Erasmus year of study. It is during my time here that I have become increasingly aware of my own shortcomings including a lack of awareness of the struggle of the Black community outside of my own sphere of knowledge, and outside of the anglophone world. So, I began my personal project of exploring and peeling back the layers of structural racism in France. There is an air of ignorance when sifting through web pages about whether “France is a racist country.” A sense of déjà-vu overcame me as just across the English Channel many have insisted that the UK is not a racist country; yet we have willingly accepted to have a leader who once referred to some from the Commonwealth in an article in the Daily Telegraph as “flag-waving piccaninnies,” a racist term used to describe Black children. In another column he wrote for the newspaper, he suggested that “tribal warriors will all break out in watermelon smiles.”

Searching for data on French immigration proved to be next to impossible. This is due to French law passed in 1978 forbidding the disaggregation of race and any information being collected on the matter. The sparse information that can be found was mainly based on either censuses or polls. Data conducted through the use of polls are always far from being accurate. Censuses that record someone’s country of birth aren’t much of an improvement. This is in comparison to the laws regarding race in the UK where information is far more precise and as a result more helpful in policy setting for ethnic minorities. In my case as British-born with Jamaican ancestry, in the UK I would consider myself as having Afro-Caribbean heritage. If I were to only categorise myself as Jamaican that would not necessarily mean that I am Black. Jamaica, like the rest of the Caribbean, is very ethnically diverse, as there are white, Black and brown Jamaicans who also have different socio-economic backgrounds. Using an individual’s country of birth is inefficient and ineffective in determining how to create socio-economic government policy to aid minorities. This also overlooks many others who are first, second and third generation immigrants who, despite being born in the country, are continually faced with racism and discrimination.

With immigration becoming an increasingly politically-charged subject (there is a rise of prominence of the far-right and parties like the National Front), its significance must be assessed. This is particularly the case for countries such as France where the Black population is relatively new in comparison to that of the United States, where African-Americans have been present since the founding of the country (albeit under different circumstances). The majority of the Black population living in metropolitan France come from former French colonies or French-speaking colonies in Africa such as Senegal, the Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of Congo and many more. Many sub-Saharan immigrants, as they are recorded by the government, move into crowded banlieues. Stereotypes and negative connotations of those living in banlieues mean that children of immigrants well into their second, third or even fourth generation are still looked upon as immigrants. Furthermore, the French concept of assimilation into society involves abandoning your cultural heritage in favour of the French. If not, you may never truly be accepted into French society and can be left as an outcast. In contrast, in the U.S. you can keep cultural ties yet continue to be considered American albeit African-American with different subcultures within it. You then only have to look at campaigns of far-right candidates such as Marine Le Pen to understand why many feel excluded and disenchanted with the rest of the nation.

In first coming across the word banlieue, you may be under the impression that banlieue is a direct equivalent of the word suburb in English. However, the word oftentimes carries a negative connotation. Banlieues instead refer to areas outside the city with social deprivation, similar to “inner city areas” as it would be called in English. Meanwhile, those residing outside the city but in more affluent towns or neighbourhoods would typically state the specific area they live in (i.e. Neuilly-sur-Seine). Many banlieues are filled with social housing and are considered socially deprived, as their inhabitants tend to be those of foreign origin. Therefore, when asked, “where do you live?” judgement follows. Banlieues aren’t only exclusive to Paris, as this also applies to other big cities in France. By contrast, in major cities in the U.S. and the UK, such as London and New York, suburbs are generally known for housing the middle and upper middle classes. “Postcode discrimination” which takes place tends to mirror racial discrimination as the majority of people who live in these areas are from minority backgrounds. Taking into account all these factors, it is to no surprise that France 24 quoted Emmanuel Macron

admitting that someone’s “address, name and skin colour” can diminish their chances of succeeding in society.

It isn’t hard to make the link between how harmful and powerful stereotypes of banlieues were generated and the fact that many immigrants reside there. This, however, was not always the case. These banlieues were originally created as attractive social housing on the periphery of industrial cities for new factory workers. These self-contained neighbourhoods were designed to meet resident’s needs. However, over time the previously residing working-middle class residents in the banlieues disliked the idea of having immigrants moving in beside them. Attracted by the French government’s promotion of property ownership during the 70s and 80s white working-to-middle class residents purchased homes in other suburbs. This was all while the wealthy residents of the central zones of large cities such as Paris strengthened their stronghold.

This movement is comparable to suburban flight, also called “white flight” found in the UK and the U.S. during a period where wealthier residents were fleeing central zones of cities for the suburbs. Banlieues however are not as monoracial as inner-city areas in the U.S. Whether the race divide is better or worse in the UK is up for debate. Yet, a survey published in 2018 entitled “Being Black in the EU” conducted by the European Union Agency for Fundamental rights found that 17% of respondents of African descent, including those from the Caribbean, live in severely deprived housing compared to the general population which lies at 3%. This is in contrast to the UK where it is at 8% and 2% respectively.

Watching news stories on how French police handle Yellow Vest protesters, it is easy to see that the use of excess police force is rather common. Ethnic minorities in France speak about cases of harassment and confrontation with the police more frequently. Digging deeper it isn’t surprising to hear that the vast majority of such incidents take place in the banlieues situated around France’s big cities. As social exclusion and unemployment is found in these neighbourhoods, it is a natural progression for there to be more crime in these neighbourhoods. Matters are exacerbated by racism, biases and discrimination found within the police force. This populace is ostracised by the state and some of whom may be made to feel unwanted and at odds with the Republic. The death of Adama Traoré in 2016 and the riots which followed highlight the problems that exist within the French policing and law system. Adama died while in the hands of the police after trying to escape when he was asked to show his I.D. Protests in France’s major cities over police brutality followed, akin to those in the U.S. following George Floyd’s death. These protests underlined the growing discontent with the police force and their use of excessive power which are unfairly and disproportionately used on ethnic minorities. There have been ongoing debates over the years over the cause of the death, whether it was due to excessive force by the officers or heart failure. In May 2020, an autopsy was published which cleared police officers from charges which held them responsible for the death of Traoré.

Coinciding with the uncannily similar death of George Floyd in May 2020, the autopsy had a profound impact on minorities in France. Similar to the UK, the Black Lives Matter movement which had started in the U.S. pressed those in France to take a moment of reflection and reassessment of the perceived value and treatment of ethnic minorities, particularly Black groups in French society. Large demonstrations then took place across the country and in July 2020 the court in charge of the case ordered that there be a new autopsy carried out. This decision was taken upon discovering that the doctors who wrote the postmortem report sought expertise from a thirdparty source without citing or mentioning their presence in the report, nor did they ask for authorization from the examining magistrate of the case.

Demonstrations have opened the world up to systemic issues that exist within France, more particularly within the police force. One demonstration which marked the distaste over the cruel and brutal way in which French authorities dismantled a migrant camp on the outskirts of Paris. Taking place at the Place de la République, a new migrant camp was made with volunteers placing tents in the square.

Once again the force moved to dismantle the camp in an aggressive fashion, removing the tents often with people inside them, many of whom were migrants, but not exclusively. The city of Paris’ deputy mayor in charge of housing criticised the “law and order response to a social situation,” according to France 24. This would only act to stimulate racial tension within the country and strengthen the views and opinions of the far-right on migrants in France.

With the benefits of the digital age, we possess the ability to document police officers’ actions which allows us to hold them accountable. This has proved to be pivotal in reporting acts of police brutality. With our mobile phones, incidents which were once kept undercover are now in the open. French politicians were planning to take a step back, taking power from the hands of the common man and reinstating power imbalances through the implementation of la loi “sécurité globale”, the global security law. The law aimed to make it an offence to show the face or identity of any officer on duty. This would have made the common person vulnerable to unsubstantiated claims and lies from enforcement officers in the system. As a result, this would have created a disproportionate negative impact on ethnic minorities, who are already more likely to land in the justice system and are subjected to racial biases, be it implicit or explicit.

In France, like the UK and the U.S., there are instances where officers have used unreasonable force outside public demonstrations, like when music producer Michel Zecler was physically and verbally abused with racist epithets being hurled towards him in his Parisian studio. However, this coincided with the aforementioned plans to curb journalist’s power of reporting on such events. Most would agree that this would have been morally and democratically reprehensible. With this collectively understood, thousands went out to protest in Paris and various other cities in France. The vast majority of protestors marched peacefully, but a few acted outside the law. In their commonly combative response, the police force unleashed tear gas and stun grenades onto crowds with the simple objective of dispersing them. Yet how is a community to feel safe, welcome and heard when they are constantly having to battle the very institution that is supposed to protect them?

My part in contributing to sustain the Black Lives Matter movement may be different to that of others. Admittedly I had presumed I knew enough about the Black Lives Matter movement just by being Black, but really, I’m only just scratching the surface. Arriving in France has shone light on issues I was completely unaware of. After all, Paris is a mere 2-hour train ride away from London so it is not hard to see why I didn’t believe there would be such a difference. Both countries, France and the UK, are hailed as modern, progressive, forward-thinking democracies known for their liberal values. Yet for such forward-thinking democracies, they remain stuck in the 70s concerning racial attitudes in various aspects, as the battle against racism and discrimination continues, fervent as ever.

By Alexander Benjamin

Photography by Louis Mack