Abstract
French colonization and the consequent War of Independence in Algeria have marked contemporary French society deeply in numerous ways. For decades, the history and memories of these events have been described as ‘padlocked’ by the state. Since the 2000s, academics have observed an increase in the political use of memory. While the literature has often employed psychoanalytical concepts to interpret this resurgence of the repressed, I argue that these readings are in fact designed to be present incursions into the past, serving to legitimate contemporary political projects. This is because new political actors and projects have emerged defending certain visions of the past in order to bolster present ambitions. In recent years, France has also experienced a rise of both far-right nationalist movements and Islamism. These radical formations continue to instrumentalize the history and memories of colonization and the war in Algeria to legitimate their discourses. In a fast-changing world, radical groups promote the rehabilitation of a reassuring past in which racial hierarchies and endogamy are associated with prestige and stability. I contend that while radical elements develop discourses bearing on the past, they thrive on the cultural insecurities of today’s youth and thereby contribute to the reification of identities. Thus, while trying to come to terms with the past, memory policies might actually contribute to its resurgence, as they tend to focus on discourses rather than social frustrations.
Highlights
More than 130 years of colonization in Algeria, a violent war of independence (1954–62) as well as consecutive waves of exile and migration have marked contemporary French society deeply in numerous ways
Scholars have for some time noted how in France contemporary institutions and the political system as a whole (Stora, La Gangrène et l’oubli), national identity (Shepard, 1962: Comment l’indépendance), Republican laws along with immigration and security policies (Blévis; Hajjat; Spire et al.; Spire) or sexualities (Stoler, Race and the Education of Desire; Shepard Sex, France, and Arab Men; Blanchard et al, Sexe, Race et Colonies) have been shaped in the wake of Algerian independence
The civil war in Algeria (1992–2001) led to the arrival of Islamist activists in France, who immersed themselves in French society and established a political platform by creating Islamist parties and movements
Summary
More than 130 years of colonization in Algeria, a violent war of independence (1954–62) as well as consecutive waves of exile and migration have marked contemporary French society deeply in numerous ways. It promotes certain views of French people with non-French origins and forges a discourse on contemporary national identity of which children of immigrants are not part, unless they acknowledge the greatness of the past and the masters of the present.
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