What do you think France will be like when these students grow up?
“TESTIMONY. After Samuel Paty’s assassination, ‘a third of my students are contesting the curriculum,'” translated from “TÉMOIGNAGE. Après l’assassinat de Samuel Paty, ‘un tiers de mes élèves conteste les programmes,'” by Arnaud Bélier, Ouest-France, November 16, 2020 (thanks to Mason):
A month ago, on October 16, Samuel Paty, professor of history and geography, was assassinated on leaving his high school in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine (Yvelines). His killer had learned that he had shown caricatures of Mohammed published in Charlie Hebdo in class. He had wanted to punish him for it. An extreme gesture, which happily remains isolated. But the difficulty remains of teaching these curricula, of nurturing debates in class calmly. As evidenced by Isabelle (assumed name), a French teacher practicing in the Parisian suburbs. She “fell from her chair” after questioning her students following the minute of silence organized in her establishment on November 2. Here is his testimony.
“I’ve been teaching for six years. I love this job that I discovered by chance, after working in the event industry. But I feel like things are changing, and not in a good way. After the Charlie Hebdo attack in January 2015, national unity formed spontaneously. Of course, we heard phrases like, “They asked for it.” We heard students say it, but it was very rare.
I wondered how I could tell the students about it
After Samuel Paty’s assassination on October 16, I wondered how I was going to be able to tell the students that I would have during the minute of silence on November 2. I was amazed that I hadn’t seen anything on social media, when students usually react quickly to news, like when girls were banned from wearing crop-tops. This time, nothing. I thought to myself: this is not normal, there is something underground.
I started my class by showing drawings by Daumier [a famous 19th century cartoonist], then some from Charlie Hebdo, but not those depicting Muhammad. I never used the word caricatures. The class went well. Afterwards, I told them to take a sheet of paper and answer, anonymously, these three questions: “What happened on October 16th?”; “What did you take away from Emmanuel Macron’s speech during the tribute to Samuel Paty?”; “Are there any points you wish to raise?”
Reassure me, aren’t you going to behead me?
And then I fell from my chair. In short, a third of the students said: “It is not normal to criticize Islam, like other religions, by the way”; “It was better before, when there was no freedom of speech”; “Why are the cartoons in the curriculum?”; “I don’t see the point in talking about all this.” We discussed this. At the end, I said to them, to lighten the mood, “Reassure me, aren’t you going to behead me?” A student replied, “Don’t worry. Not you …”
A third of a class that challenges the curriculum, it’s scary, it’s going to be hard to deconstruct. What to say to this second-grade student who, during a presentation, pixelated the sex of a statue of Modigliani, because he found it “inappropriate”? What to say to these students who say they are shocked by Persepolis [a comic strip, then a film by Marjane Satrapi on her youth in Iran]? What to answer when someone asks me: “Why does Dieudonné lose all his trials, and Charlie Hebdo, never?”
Teachers should be forced to take civics classes
I feel helpless. I think that we can only deconstruct these discourses by being concrete about the scientific knowledge that we teach students. When I became a teacher four years ago, I was asked to memorize the Ten Positions of a State Official. Slogans that mean nothing. Teachers should be required to take solid civics lessons. However, it is clear that we do not have enough control over these subjects today.”
James says
I THINK that if the students are that dangerous, perhaps such topics should be taught by the military or the police, who are well protected against violence and are trained to defend themselves. Why risk the lives of teachers? If the EU or national governments want to bring dangerous people into their populations, then they should protect the public and not just throw them to the wolves.
Clive Delmonte says
Good idea…good suggestion, James.
Barbara Renton says
You are quite right, James! I’m so glad my school and college days ended decades ago. We used to have normal, calm discussions in school. Now it sounds much scarier.
Wellington says
Tough call which is worse: Islam or ignorance of Islam. I vote the latter because ignorance of malevolence is an even greater threat to the best mankind can produce that evil itself.
James Lincoln says
Wellington,
The slow death of Western Europe started with *ignorance* of islam, and then *islam* after the muslim invaders had arrived…
Mustapha crap says
For centuries our forefathers fought to keep our European civilised nations free from the scourge of islam. They would be spinning in the graves at the weak leaders who have betrayed everything they stood for by allowing the depravity of islam to infest our great nations and atttack our cultural heritage. The left who ally with islam only need to look at the Irania revolution where upon seizing power after deposing the Shah, Homeini executed all the socialists that assisted him, lest they became a threat to him down the line, if the fuckwit LGBT brigade think they will be wearing rainbow flip flops after the revolution they are sadly deluded, they and every other useful idiot that helps to advance islam will be removed just as in Iran. Those of us who believe in freedom need to fight all the harder to halt the spread of islam in the western civilised nations, our culture is far superior to all others, and we must robustly enforce it
James Lincoln says
Mustapha crap,
Correct.
The Western Left, if any Western country becomes islamized, will go the way of the communist Iranian Tudeh Party post-1979 revolution.
gravenimage says
+1
Barbara Renton says
You, Mustapha, are SO correct in what you say here! Our Pres.Jefferson started the newer addition to our military called the Marines who’d fight the barbery pirates in the Atlantic. The Crusades were supposed to eliminate the islamics but woefully couldn’t finish that job. Now they are here to lop all of our heads off as infidels. Why the Left is all about not offending them and not crititicing their backward ideaology is beyond me.
gravenimage says
The worst thing is that in most cases this is not simple ignorance–i.e., just not knowing. Instead, it is *willful* ignorance, which is far more pernicious.
Mike 2 says
Skilful ignorance is prejudice and bigotry.
Mike #2 says
Willful.
Mike 2 says
Spell checker fault. I meant “willful “.
Barbara Renton says
Ask any liptard if they’ve read the koran and they’ll say no. They have no clue and don’t want to know what billions of people are made to memorize!
gravenimage says
France: Teacher reports that a third of her students say ‘It is not normal to criticize Islam’
………………..
Hideous–and how many of these cherubs are for beheading any teachers who disagree? So far, there seem to be an awful lot of them…
underbed cat says
The islamic movements’ dawah delivered by Imam was deception tactic that used by omission that was necessary to enter France initially as refugees, had the intelligence of the country noticed that this is an unusal “religion”, and attacks of citizens was brutal with names of arabic origin, that resulted in denials by a mosque or imam in front of camera’s that is as close as you can get to seeing the truth but denying the reality and magnitude of a problem, since the perp often spoke out his motives and claimed to be soldiers for Allah. Supported to dismiss the evidence with tried and calls of racism and lack of review of source doctrine and many French conversions and marriages began, since the door was swung open. I give Macron so much credit lately as he denouced the violence but he still needs to understand its power to establish communities and organization to weaken France with demands of enforcing hate speech. The children raised in Islamic homes with training of the Quran know it is sharia laws of Islam that forbid exposure, so for those children information is illegal. That is the problem and they support the writings that call for jihad warfare against non believers seems normal for those children. In effect the Frence government in thinking diversity is godly did bring danger to the population with the open doors, and the problem is once the mind is conditioned to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing with an ultimate goal of control of France with a population afraid to speak is aiding the wolf. It is Europe and the West in it’s sites along with the Africa’s land. As long as they deny to infidels the nature when under pressure and claim to be victims, they hold power over Macron he needs to know all traps of the language they speak.
Sylvia Drummond says
Are the French students French or immigrants? If they are immigrants they are susceptible to what their parents tell them and nothing will change their attitude. If they think that beheading someone is normal they should be expelled and their families deported.
gravenimage says
Probably a mix of both–even those born in France have Muslim parents, Mosques, and “community”.
Barbara Renton says
Sylvia, I totally agree with you! In many muslim countries no infidels are allowed. But WE are the ones who have to be tolerant?
i quit being tolerant after 9/11 when I saw what they did to NYC.
Walter Sieruk says
It would be better said “It’s not safe to criticize Islam.”
rubiconcrest says
To survive a society needs to share certain fundamental values. Freedom of speech and tolerance are two of those fundamental values. There can be no negotiation on those. With Islam it’s either ‘think like us’ or die which of course will lead to civil war.
gravenimage says
Muslims want to impose their barbaric values *on us*.
OLD GUY says
WAKE UP WORLD! Islam is not about LOVE and PEACE.
Islam is about POWER and CONTROL
Islam is doing a great job of brainwashing its followers.
Islam is not a RACE it is an IDEOLOGY, of world control.
Islam is the loss of FREEDOM.
Open borders allows the migration INVASION of islam into your country.
Barbara Renton says
YOU, Old Guy, are 100% correct and sound like my daddy. And my parents would say the same thing.