Algerians in France and history classes
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Baldwin writes about the French colonial attitudes towards Algerians when he visited Paris in 1948. Often colonial societies believe that they bring civilization to “inferior” societies. France believed that it was doing civilizing work in Africa, especially in Algeria, to people who did not want to be “civilized.” This rejection of white French culture led to people believing that Algerians were lazy and uncivilized. They had trouble finding jobs because of racism and stereotypes, and white French thought they did not want to work. Algerians were living in poverty in cold rooms, and as Baldwin says, many of them spent their time in Arab cafés drinking tea. White French people did not make Algerians feel welcome in France, even though French society gained a lot from Algerians immigrating to France. Baldwin writes about the relationship between the police and Algerians in this era. France felt that it was losing its empire. Its authority was challenged by Arabs, and its presence in Algeria was contested. The police have always been menacing towards Algerians. Their fear of losing the French empire led to the police becoming vindictive and more violent, not knowing what to do. There was also the common colonial discourse of ingratitude: we brought them civilization, and they should not fight our authority but be grateful.
I remember learning a bit about the colonial relationship between France relationship in history class in high school. The subject was taught very quickly. It is only recently that the school system has even started to teach this part of history. When my mom was in high school in the 1980s, the subject was taboo. She told me her teacher said that the subject of Algeria was very important and that is it bad that the school system did not allow teachers to talk about it. At least her teacher raised awareness about it. It showcases the tendency of colonial governments to purposefully forget its shameful history or tell it in a way that promotes the empire. Martin, in Feeling Superior, writes about the feeling of superiority among many white people because of the type of history we’re taught at school: “the winners of a war never tell a history that doesn’t suit them.” (p.157) I will have to check my high school history notebooks, but I am pretty sure it is still the case today.