Paris, France is one of the most extraordinary destinations in the world. It is also an exceptional site in the African diaspora, a “City of Light” that Ernest Hemingway befittingly describes as “a moveable feast.” Nowhere has a metropolis in mainland Europe been so historically and socially transformed by a fascinating diversity of people from countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Americas. Although their presence in France is centuries-old, Paris and France continue to be a contested home for their French descendants and others of African descent where questions of race, racialization, racism, anti-racism and their intersection conjugate with myths, narratives, and representations of these regions as colorblind and race-free.

What is Afro/Black Paris? What are the important events, key debates, and central figures associated with it? What do belonging and identity politics look like on the ground for citizens and denizens who refer to themselves and/or are referred to by others as “Afro French,” “B/black,” or “N/noir-e-s?” Is it as James Baldwin writes, “[i]n America, the color of my skin had stood between myself and me; in Europe, that barrier was down?”

• Experience a unique opportunity to explore “another Paris,” the exceptional and lived-experience that we refer to as Afro/Black Paris!
• Experience workshops on art, cuisine, film, Hip Hop, jazz, the literary landscape, museums, open markets, and so much more!
• Experience fieldtrips, ranging from a major slave port in France (i.e., Nantes) to the fairytale medieval village and chateau in the Dordogne region (i.e., Chateau des Milandes) where Josephine Baker and her twelve adopted children prospered!

 

For more information contact Professor Trica Keaton, African and African America Studies, Dartmouth College.