France
Behind the Abaya Ban — with Rim-Sarah Alouane
The abaya is a loose, flowing robe popular with many Muslim women for its modest cut. Why did France just ban it from public schools? Rim-Sarah Alouane, Rasha Al Aqeedi and Erin Clare Brown break it down on The Lede.
The Republic Makes No Distinction Among Its Children — with Chahrazade Douah and Jean Beaman
“They're not just angry; they're terrified.” Journalist Chahrazade Douah and sociologist Jean Beaman join New Lines magazine’s Erin Clare Brown to unpack the protests sweeping across France in the wake of Nahel Merzouk’s killing by the police.
The Roots of France’s Riots
“We know it is the only way to get heard, the only way the media will talk about us, our anger. And don’t be mistaken, we weren’t just Arabs and Black kids; there were many others with us,” he said. In Mulhouse, in eastern France, young men shared the same conclusions. “It’s our revolt,” said Mehdi. “And if nothing changes, we will carry on, we have no other way, we are fed up.”
France’s Constitution Is Blind to Race. Does That Make It Racist?
Race is an inescapable background to the events unfolding in France, yet it is difficult to fully grasp or research this because it is literally illegal to collect any data pertaining to this aspect of French society — or about religion or ethnicity.
In the Shadow of Paris’ Olympic Village, Migrants Are Pushed Into the Cold
The expulsion of the Unibeton squatters falls in line with an aggressive policy — often using mega-events like the Olympics as a catalyst — of urban renewal, which prioritizes development over human lives and disperses vulnerable populations, like migrants and people experiencing homelessness, further from big cities in the interest of “sanitizing” them.
Netflix Satire Puts French Universalism to the Test
Netflix's "Represent" tells the story of Stéphane Blé, an affable Black 30-something youth worker in the notorious banlieues of Paris who, thanks to a social media fluke, unexpectedly finds himself running for president. A furious battle for what kind of France is possible ensues.
A Female Muslim Scholar in France Discovers a Past That’s Present
In my role as a doctoral scholar at MIT, a journey to the government archives in the French city of Nantes felt like a chance to discover the hidden history of the conquest of Morocco. But I found my own identity followed me everywhere.