Blacks in France
Total population | |
---|---|
(Approximately 1.8-3 million (3-5% of the French population); it is illegal for the French State to collect data on ethnicity and race.) | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, French West Indies, French Guiana, Réunion, Mayotte, New Caledonia | |
Languages | |
French; various African languages, French Creoles and others | |
Religion | |
Christianity, Islam, Judaism, others |
French Black people or Black people in France (French: Noirs de France) are people who are of Black African ancestry or Afro-Caribbean.
Population statistics
Although it is illegal for the French state to collect data on ethnicity and race, a law with its origins in the 1789 revolution and reaffirmed in the constitution of 1958,[1] various population estimates exist. One source states that there are 1.5 million black people in France,[2] while another states 1.865 million, equivalent to just under 4 per cent of the population.[3] An article in the New York Times stated that estimates vary between 3 million and 5 million.[4] 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.[5][6]
Some organizations, such as the Representative Council of France's Black Associations (French: Conseil représentatif des associations noires de France, CRAN), have argued in favour of the introduction of data collection on minority groups but this has been resisted by other organizations and ruling politicians,[7][8] often on the grounds that collecting such statistics goes against France's secular principles and harks back to Vichy-era identity documents.[9] During the 2007 presidential election, however, Nicolas Sarkozy was polled on the issue and stated that he favoured the collection of data on ethnicity.[10] 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 members of the French Parliament or government from overseas France
There have been dozens of Afro-Caribbean or Afro-French MPs representing overseas electoral districts at the French National Assembly or at the French Senate, and several government members.
- Aimé Césaire, mayor of Fort-de-France and deputy from Martinique for the PCF/Martinican Progressive Party.
- Serge Letchimy, deputy for Martinique Socialist Party, Letchimy is also of partial Tamil descent.
- 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.
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)
- Élie Bloncourt (1896-1978), second Black metropolitan deputy (1936-40, 1945-47), first Black metropolitan general councillor (1934-40, 1945-51)[11]
- Ernest Chénière (1945-), former deputy for Oise (1993-97)
- Raphaël Élizé (fr) (1891-1945), first Black metropolitan mayor (1929-40)[12]
- Hélène Geoffroy, deputy for Rhône, mayor
- 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
- Kofi Yamgnane, former minister, former MP, former mayor, former general councillor in Brittany
Political activists
- Frantz Fanon, Marxist, existentialist and anti-colonial author and activist. Renounced his French citizenship.
- Louis-Georges Tin, president of the Representative Council of France's Black Associations and founder of the International Day Against Homophobia
In sports
- Christine Arron, track and field sprint athlete
- Nicolas Batum, basketball player
- Laura Flessel, fencer
- Constantin Henriquez, Olympic rugby union player
- Gaël Monfils, tennis player
- Yannick Noah, tennis player
- Mickaël Piétrus, basketball player
- Teddy Riner, judoka
- Francis Ngannou, mixed martial artist
In football
- Lilian Thuram, footballer
- Thierry Henry, footballer
- Marcel Desailly, footballer
- Patrick Vieira, footballer
- Steve Mandanda, footballer
- Josuha Guilavogui, footballer
- Patrice Evra, footballer
- Yann M'Vila, footballer
- Blaise Matuidi, footballer
- Bacary Sagna, footballer
- Mamadou Sakho, footballer
- Paul Pogba, footballer
- Eliaquim Mangala, footballer
- Lass Diarra, footballer
- Kurt Zouma, footballer
- Anthony Martial, footballer
- Kingsley Coman, footballer
- Moussa Sissoko, footballer
In entertainment and media
- Josephine Baker, dancer and singer
- Mouss Diouf, actor
- Miss Dominique, singer
- Fabe, rapper
- Hélène and Célia Faussart (Les Nubians), singing duo
- Imany, singer
- Hubert Kounde, actor
- 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, actor
- Olivier Coipel, comic book artist
- Black M, rapper
European / African (or Afro-Caribbean) descent
- 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
- Noémie Lenoir, model
- Chloé Mortaud, Miss France 2009
- Anais Mali, model
- Tony Parker, basketball player
- Sonia Rolland, actress, Miss France 2000
- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, tennis player
- Flora Coquerel, Miss France
See also
- African immigration to France
- African Americans in France
- Cape Verdeans in France
- Haitians in France
References
- 1 2 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.
- ↑ Tagliabue, John (2005-09-21). "French blacks skeptical of race neutrality". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ "First French racism poll released". BBC News. 2007-01-31. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ Kimmelman, Michael (2008-06-17). "For blacks in France, Obama's rise is reason to rejoice, and to hope". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ Bennhold, Katrin (2006-08-03). "Black anchor fills top spot on French TV". International Herald Tribune. p. 2. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ "Franceblack". Retrieved 2010-04-06.
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ "Black residents of France say they are discriminated against". International Herald Tribune. 2007-01-31. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ "France's ethnic minorities: To count or not to count". The Economist. 390 (8624): 62. 2009-03-28.
- ↑ Chrisafis, Angelique (2007-02-24). "French presidential candidates divided over race census". The Guardian. p. 25. Retrieved 2009-10-27.
- ↑ Pierre-Yves Lambert, “Conseillers généraux d'origine non-européenne Archived July 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.”, Suffrage Universel
- ↑ Pierre-Yves Lambert, “Maires métropolitains d'origine non-européenne Archived July 23, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.”, Suffrage Universel