Black people in France

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French Black People
Total population
Approximately 3-5 million;
it is illegal for the French State to collect data on ethnicity and race.
Regions with significant populations
Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Saint Martin, Réunion, Mayotte, New Caledonia
Languages
French, French Creoles, New Caledonian languages, and African languages
Religion
majority Christianity, minorities Islam, Irreligion and Traditional African religions

French Black people or Black people in France (French: Noirs de France) or Afro-French (Afro-Français) are French citizens, residents who are of black African or Melanesian ancestry, or biracial and/or multiracial Black people with French ancestry.

Population statistics[]

Although it is illegal for the French state to collect data on ethnicity and race in the census (a law with its origins in the 1789 revolution and reaffirmed in the constitution of 1958),[1] various population estimates exist. An article in The New York Times in 2008 stated that estimates vary between 3 million and 5 million.[2] It is estimated that four out of five black people in France are of African immigrant origin, with the minority being chiefly of Caribbean ancestry.[3][4]

Some organizations, such as the Representative Council of France's Black Associations (French: Conseil représentatif des associations noires de France, CRAN), have argued in favor of the introduction of data collection on minority groups but this has been resisted by other organizations and ruling politicians,[5][6] often on the grounds that collecting such statistics goes against France's secular principles and harks back to Vichy-era identity documents.[7] During the 2007 presidential election, however, Nicolas Sarkozy was polled on the issue and stated that he favoured the collection of data on ethnicity.[8] Part of a parliamentary bill which would have permitted the collection of data for the purpose of measuring discrimination was rejected by the Conseil Constitutionnel in November 2007.[1]

Notable people[]

In French politics[]

Afro-French or Kanak members of the French Parliament or government from overseas France[]

There have been dozens of Afro-Caribbean, Kanak, and Afro-French MPs representing overseas electoral districts at the French National Assembly or at the French Senate, and several government members.

  • Roger Bambuck, Minister of Youth and Sports from 1988 to 1991.
  • Aimé Césaire, mayor of Fort-de-France and deputy from Martinique for the PCF/Martinican Progressive Party.
  • Jean-Louis d'Anglebermes, Kanak politician from Caledonian Union.
  • Félix Éboué, French Guianan-born colonial administrator and Free French leader.
  • Laura Flessel-Colovic, she became the Sport Minister in 2017.
  • Serge Letchimy, deputy for Martinique Socialist Party, Letchimy is also of partial Tamil descent.
  • Gaston Monnerville, politician and lawyer, he was the president of the Senate from 1958 to 1968.
  • Maurice Ponga, New Caledonian politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the Overseas constituency from 2009 to 2019.
  • Christiane Taubira, deputy from French Guiana, was the first black candidate to a French presidential election, in 2002. In 2012, she became the Justice Minister until 2016.
Laetitia Avia is an MP from Paris for La République En Marche!
Maxette Grisoni-Pirbakas is the spokeswoman for the National Rally in the European Parliament.

Afro-French people elected in metropolitan France[]

  • Severiano de Heredia, president of the municipal council of Paris (1879–1880/ sort of mayor of Paris ), deputy for Paris (1881–1889), minister (1887)
  • Blaise Diagne (1872-1934), first black African elected to the French Chamber of Deputies, and the first to hold a position in the French government.
  • Élie Bloncourt (1896–1978), second Black metropolitan deputy (1936–40, 1945–47), first Black metropolitan general councillor (1934–40, 1945–51)[9]
  • Ernest Chénière (1945–), former deputy for Oise (1993–97)
  • (fr) (1891–1945), first Black metropolitan mayor (1929–40)[10]
  • Hélène Geoffroy, deputy for Rhône, mayor
  • Maxette Grisoni-Pirbakas, elected an MEP in 2019.
  • Gaston Monnerville (1897–1991), first Black metropolitan senator (1946–1974), president of the French Senate (1947–68), mayor, president of Lot's general council
  • George Pau-Langevin, Paris deputy (2007–12), junior minister (2012–2014), Minister for Overseas (2014–)
  • Arthur Richards (1890–1972), general councillor in Bordeaux (1951–1964), deputy for Gironde (1958–67)
  • Rama Yade, former minister and secretary of State
  • Harlem Désir, former minister for European Affairs and MEP, former First Secretary of the French Socialist Party
  • Kofi Yamgnane, former minister, former MP, former mayor, former general councillor in Brittany.
  • Hervé Berville, Rwandan genocide survivor, French economist and politician, Côtes-d'Armor MP for La République En Marche! since June 2017, party spokesperson.
  • Seybah Dagoma, then 34-year-old lawyer of Chadian descent and founding member of a left-wing think tank, was elected in a Parisian constituency in 2012 and in office until 2017.
  • Laetitia Avia, lawyer of Togolese descent, member of the National Assembly for the 6th constituency of Paris since 2017.
  • Danièle Obono, Gabonese descent MP for La France Insoumise representing the 17th Paris constituency since the legislative elections of 2017.

Political activists[]

  • Frantz Fanon, Marxist, existentialist and anti-colonial author and activist. Renounced his French citizenship.
  • Kémi Séba, Pan-Africanist political leader, writer, activist and geopolitical analyst for various African television channels
  • Louis-Georges Tin, president of the Representative Council of France's Black Associations and founder of the International Day Against Homophobia
  • Rokhaya Diallo, French journalist, BET-France host, author, filmmaker, and activist for racial, gender and religious equality.
  • Sibeth Ndiaye, French-Senegalese communications advisor. Government Spokeswoman for Edouard Philippe's government from April 2019 to July 2020.
  • Susanna Ounei, Kanak independence activist.

In sports[]

In basketball[]

In football[]

In rugby[]

Other sports[]

  • Christine Arron, track and field sprint athlete
  • Surya Bonaly, Olympic figure skater
  • Laura Flessel-Colovic, fencer
  • Vanessa James, Olympic figure skater
  • Yannick Noah, last French French Open tennis winner to this day (1983), current French Davis Cup coach
  • Gaël Monfils, tennis player
  • Daniel Narcisse, team handbball player, IHF World Player of the Year 2012
  • Francis Ngannou, mixed martial artist
  • Earvin N'Gapeth, volleyball player
  • Éric N'Gapeth, father of Earvin, volleyball player
  • Marie-José Pérec, multiple Olympic gold medal sprinter
  • Jackson Richardson, team handbball player, IHF World Player of the Year 1995
  • Teddy Riner, judoka
  • Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, tennis player

In entertainment and media[]

American-born Josephine Baker in 1932
  • Josephine Baker, dancer and singer
  • Guillaume Guillon-Lethière, painter
  • Fatou Diome, best-selling and award-winning author of Senegalese origin.
  • , journalist and TV presenter of Nigerian descent
  • Édouard Montoute, French actor and thespian
  • , TV newscaster for BFM TV
  • , TV newscaster for M6
  • Mouss Diouf, actor
  • Ladj Ly, film director and screenwriter
  • Aya Nakamura, singer
  • Miss Dominique, singer
  • Fabe, rapper
  • Hélène and Célia Faussart (Les Nubians), singing duo
  • Aissa Maiga, actress
  • Sonia Rolland, actress
  • Imany, singer
  • Hubert Kounde, actor and thespian
  • Lord Kossity, Dancehall musician
  • Dieudonné M'bala M'bala, comedian and anti-Zionist activist
  • Fab Morvan, model and singer, half of Milli Vanilli
  • Audrey Pulvar, newscaster and journalist
  • Firmine Richard, actress
  • Harry Roselmack, newscaster
  • Omar Sy, César-winning actor
  • Olivier Coipel, comic book artist
  • Black M, rapper
  • MHD, rapper
  • MC Solaar, cult French rapper
  • Niska, rapper
  • Dadju, singer
  • A painting of black nun Louise Marie Thérèse, from 1695
    Shy'm, pop singer
  • Les Twins, new-style hip-hop dancers
  • Ziak, rapper

In literature[]

European / African (or Afro-Caribbean) descent[]

  • Alexandre Dumas, writer
  • Alexandre Dumas fils, writer
  • Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, general in the French Revolution and father of Alexandre Dumas
  • Thierry Dusautoir, rugby player
  • Chevalier de Saint-Georges, composer, conductor, and violinist, master fencer and military man
  • Rudy Gobert, basketball player
  • Noémie Lenoir, model
  • Chevalier de Meude-Monpas, French musician and composer
  • Chloé Mortaud, Miss France 2009
  • Anais Mali, model
  • Sonia Rolland, actress, Miss France 2000
  • Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, tennis player
  • Gaël Monfils, tennis player
  • Flora Coquerel, Miss France 2014
  • Alicia Aylies, Miss France 2017
  • Willy William, singer and producer
  • Cindy Bruna, model

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Oppenheimer, David B. (2008). "Why France needs to collect data on racial identity...in a French way". Hastings International and Comparative Law Review. 31 (2): 735–752. SSRN 1236362.
  2. ^ Kimmelman, Michael (17 June 2008). "For blacks in France, Obama's rise is reason to rejoice, and to hope". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  3. ^ Bennhold, Katrin (3 August 2006). "Black anchor fills top spot on French TV". International Herald Tribune. p. 2. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  4. ^ "Franceblack". Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  5. ^ Louis-Georges, Tin (2008). "Who is afraid of Blacks in France? The Black question: The name taboo, the number taboo". French Politics, Culture & Society. 26 (1): 32–44. doi:10.3167/fpcs.2008.260103.
  6. ^ "Black residents of France say they are discriminated against". International Herald Tribune. 31 January 2007. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  7. ^ "France's ethnic minorities: To count or not to count". The Economist. 390 (8624): 62. 28 March 2009.
  8. ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (24 February 2007). "French presidential candidates divided over race census". The Guardian. p. 25. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  9. ^ Pierre-Yves Lambert, "Conseillers généraux d'origine non-européenne Archived 15 July 2012 at archive.today", Suffrage Universel
  10. ^ Pierre-Yves Lambert, "Maires métropolitains d'origine non-européenne Archived 14 July 2012 at archive.today", Suffrage Universel
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