'The narrative offered to French students completely ignores the Black figures who shaped France's history'

The election of French citizens of African descent as mayors in several municipalities, following the French municipal elections in March, unleashed a torrent of racist abuse, something too many people – French or foreign – encounter daily. Stemming from a long legacy of slavery and colonialism, racism targeting people who identify as Black is deeply entrenched in some segments of French society. Overcoming this, if it is ever fully possible, requires broad and comprehensive action.

Several responses are available. In the short and medium term, there is activist and political engagement, as exemplified by the rally held on April 4 in the northeastern Paris suburb of Saint-Denis, initiated by its new mayor, Bally Bagayoko, a member of the radical left La France Insoumise (LFI). Or there is the justice system, whose efforts to combat discrimination nevertheless remain significantly hindered, as highlighted in February by a report from the Defender of Rights, France's national human rights ombudsman.

Over the long term, for about three decades now, much hope has been placed in the education system, especially through teaching about France's history of slavery and colonialism. Yet this approach not only confines African populations to a narrative of victimhood, it also privileges the degrading and contemptuous perspective of slave traders and colonizers.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Taubira Law, named after French politician and MEP Christiane Taubira, in recognition of the Atlantic slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity. And beyond these tragic events, people of African descent are still left out of the national story passed on to students. As a result, despite the universalist ideals of the French public education system, it is far from certain that the account of the past presented to middle and high school students aligns with the plan, advocated by writer Léonora Miano in her essay Afropea. Utopie post-occidentale et post-raciste ("Afropea: A Post-Western and Post-Racist Utopia"), to "deracialize our perspectives."

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