"We are resistance fighters and there are more of us than you think": Lilian Thuram in the Var to continue his fight against racism

Fighting a crime might seem like a given. What could be more natural than stating that burglary, sexual assault, misuse of corporate assets, or fraud are all wrong?

The expression of racism is also a crime, yet combating it doesn't seem so straightforward. Because he himself has been marked by it, Lilian Thuram has been traveling across France for nearly two decades, fighting racism.

" You are not born black, you become black ," says the former footballer, borrowing Simone de Beauvoir's phrase. " For my part, I became black at the age of 9 when, having arrived from Guadeloupe, I was insulted as a "dirty black" by a friend in my CM2 class ." An electroshock for the little boy, " which pushed me, beyond anger, to question myself constantly on the subject ever since. "

A reflection that led him to create his "Foundation for Education Against Racism" and to publish numerous works on the subject.

He was in Salernes on Wednesday evening, in partnership with the Caractères Libres bookstore and the Terra Verde third-party venue, both based in Aups, to meet with the public. A session marked by kindness and a necessary perspective, despite the emotion. Selected excerpts.

Education

Asked about the notion of education, which he made a point of mentioning in his foundation, he says: " Saying good evening, saying thank you, it's my mother who taught me, and it's called education. We don't really realize it ourselves, but we also receive conditioning. Racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. are transmitted through this means, and hierarchies of prejudice, such as "I am superior to him because I am white and he is black" or "I am superior to her because I am a boy, and she is a girl" are born there. It takes courage to become aware of it, and to confront it."

At what age do you turn white?

When asked of the audience, the question went unanswered. " It's normal, you've never asked yourself the question because, according to a historical construct, being white is normal. But when you experience racism for the first time, it's often a trauma ."

Lilian Thuram also recalled " the existence of white privilege, even today. Some people cannot understand it; they have their own problems too. But it would be worse if they were black or North African. It's the same for male privilege. "

Fate and silence

When, as a child, Lilian Thuram explained to his mother that he was a victim of racism, " she replied, as she often does in such cases: 'that's how it is, people are racist, they're not going to change'." The implication was: it's inevitable. But no, growing up, I learned about history, I did some research, and I learned that racism isn't natural, it's a historical construct. Like any problem, when you understand it, it goes better. A child who finds the words will be less violent than a child who doesn't. Understanding helped me free myself from my anger. When someone utters a racist insult against me - and I'm still confronted with it today, when people don't recognize me - it says something about them, but not about me."

"Pitting poor people against other poor people"

" Racism is a historical, ideological, political and economic construct of certain powerful people, in order to be able to exploit them better: it is the history of slavery, colonization, the conquest of America, etc. But this is always done for the benefit of certain powerful people, and not for the entire population. It is a mechanism that we can still observe today: we set poor people against other poor people, and many people easily fall into this trap ."

Lilian Thuram recalled Voltaire's famous quote against slavery: "That's the price you pay to eat sugar." This quote is still relevant today: at what price do we own a cell phone today?

Racists

" Racist people gain something from this, easily, quickly, very quickly and very powerfully. They say: I am not like them, I am superior to them ," says Lilian Thuram.

" These people have a problem, and we need to say so. One of the greatest dangers would be to legitimize racism, to show understanding. No, it's not normal, and we need to intervene every time ."

The turnaround

Citing the example of footballers who are victims of racist insults, the world champion pointed out: "If they get angry, they're the ones who get a red card. If they want to leave the pitch, their teammates hold them back, tell them to calm down. As if the problem came from them... When you're a victim of racism and you defend yourself, with emotion and anger, it often turns against the victim. Women are also familiar with this mechanism, we'll say of them "oh my, she's hysterical..." However, once again, it is essential to say that this is not normal!

Politics

Why did you decline President Sarkozy's invitation to become Minister of Diversity? " For me, politics is not opportunism; it is, above all, about taking care of others. For example, we must take care of migrants today, not because they are migrants, but simply because they are, like us, human beings. At what point do we forget that? Each of us should be able to hope to improve our lives (...). Politics has become a show, based on punchlines. It doesn't matter if what we say is true; the important thing is that it works. "

Hope

To members of the public expressing their dismay and weariness in the face of unashamed racist discourse, particularly in the Var region, Lilian Thuram sought to be combative.

" We must not forget that before, things were worse. My grandfather was born only 60 years after the abolition of slavery, it's not prehistory. When my mother was born, segregation reigned in the United States. And when I was born, Apartheid was in place in South Africa... Those who are radicalizing into racism today do so out of fear, because they feel that the world is changing. They are afraid of losing a certain superiority. But in the face of this, we are resisters. We have no other choice but to resist... And if it can reassure you: there are more of us than you think. And in the end, resistance always wins! "

The evening concluded after a warm welcome from the crowd and a book signing session. The world champion was expected this Thursday to deliver his message to middle school students in Aups and Barjols.