MAboula Soumahoro is a prominent French scholar and intellectual. A PhD candidate who studied both in France and at Columbia University in the US, she is an associate professor at the University of Tours, an expert on the African diaspora and one of France's leading academics when it comes to race relations. .
So when the European Parliament decided to invite her Last month, I attended an internal event as part of a dialogue to discuss how we can “promote equality and inclusion in the workplace,” and it made perfect sense.
However, that event never happened. First, far-right French lawmaker Mathilde Androuet. wrote on Parliamentary President Roberta Mezzola called for the event to be canceled, saying Soumahoro had made racist overtones and called into question her expertise. Later, far-right French lawmaker Marion Maréchal, a former member of the National Assembly led by his aunt Marine Le Pen, stepped in and increased the pressure with a post on X condemning Soumahoro in even stronger terms. Anti-White Speaker.”
Marechal's criticisms would be laughable if he hadn't succeeded. In less than 24 hours, this is what the far right has become. This was reported by the French news agency Mediapart.we managed to cancel the event.
The European Parliament has officially announced that the event will be postponed until an unspecified date, but far-right groups are already claiming this is a “first victory”.
The accusations leveled against Soumahoro by Maréchal and her followers have been countered by scholars as “unspeakable aggression,” a “violation” of her intellectual argument, and a distortion of the very meaning of racism. has been done. They also Detailed error uncovered by Mediapart: They simply don't stand up to scrutiny. Marechal accused Soumahoro of being part of a “radical and provocative ideological fringe” for “promoting the concept of 'racial burden'” and supporting the “conspiracy theory” of “white privilege.” did.
Another complaint was that she attended a summer camp in 2016 that focused on decolonialism, which was allegedly “forbidden to white people.”
Soumahoro is definitely theorized “The Burden of Race.” This refers to what non-white people have to face every day in a society that was not built to include white people, and where they are constantly exposed to discrimination. White people have the privilege of not having to deal with systemic racism. The allegedly racist summer camp was aimed at people who had personally faced racism. Obviously, this means people of color.
Even if you want to refute Soumahoro's theory, we are in a global situation where far-right forces are gaining strength. It is deeply disappointing to see black women of authority so easily vilified and silenced by the ideological far-right, who are shifting public discourse to the right through claims of “anti-whiteness.” That's true.
France is no stranger to controversy over the visibility of black and brown figures. Earlier this year, I wrote about my outrage when it was announced that Aya Nakamura would sing at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. And when you speak out about race and gain public attention, you run the risk of being ignored. I had to do the same myself. deal with cancellations Shortly after his appointment, he was expelled from a government advisory body. The reason for this was that I was asserting the existence of systemic racism in France.
France is also so obsessed with so-called color blindness that it cannot tolerate the public presence of anyone who challenges our country's theoretical universalism.
Maréchal said Soumahoro is aiming to be introduced in France and Europe. “Harmful and conflict-driven approach to social relations. ”This is a deliberate attempt to rewrite history. Europe's long colonial past has engrained racism and white supremacy into the fabric of our society. And by deliberately denying our history, we are allowing far-right ideas to gain ever more influence within our organizations.
Forgetting that the National Rally was originally co-founded as the Front National by the grandfather of Jean-Marie Le Pen Maréchal, who along with former Nazi collaborators was repeatedly convicted of hate speech and indicted as a Holocaust denier. Must not be.
Two elected officials who honed their skills in such parties (Androuet is a national caucus member) now hold anti-racist black women “to the core values of tolerance and respect.” The fact that you can publicly criticize someone for “dissent.” [they] “Uphold” is an incredible inversion of reality. The agenda of these extremist parties, which pretend to care about respect for others, is fueled by the rejection of immigrants and their descendants, and the seeming equation of Europeanness with whiteness. .
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Encouragingly, a broad coalition has rallied to support Dr. Soumahoro. Nine other women activists, academics, artists and European nationals (Audrey Celestine, Miriam Kotias, Tara Dickman, Alice Diop, Penda Diouf, Eva Doumbia, Nadia Yara Kiskidi, Grace Lee) , Mame Fatou Niang), I signed it. open letter Request to the President of the European Parliament to reschedule the event. our petition It currently has over 7,000 signatures.
Mr. Soumahoro, who I am honored to call his friend, remains unyielding. “We don't know what they believe, but we will never give up.” she spoke at a public event Days after the cancellation, when asked about far-right claims.
But she faced The level of hate and online threats in recent weeks has been so alarming that her university has decided to support her if she takes legal action. She told me she is currently “exploring legal options.” “They need to be held accountable.”
After June's European elections, the far-right, more powerful than ever, “launched a strategic attack” against people like her, Soumahoro said. She feels “honored” to be “identified as an enemy” of the far right.
Despite her resilience, this ugly episode proves her point. It reinforces the critical nature of her research on the functions and effects of racism.
Europe's brave far-right is waging a culture war, targeting those who dare to call out bigotry, especially people of color who embody the ideas and values they want to annihilate. We cannot allow the idea that Europe and its shared institutions must be a safe space for everyone to dominate our public sphere.
