As part of the Humanity in Action Paris program our hosts decided to let us see some of Paris’ different neighbourhoods to better understand the history of cultural diversity in the city. We had a choice of 5 areas: The Jewish Marais, Historic Arab Paris & the Institut du Monde Arabe, Belleville Artisans and Immigrants, La Goutte d’Or and finally the Chinese district in Paris. Below are our accounts of two of the city’s unique neighbourhoods.
Sofie: I went to La Goutte d’Or which translates into ‘the golden drop’. Our excellent local guide told us that the name originates from back when this was a rural area outside of Paris where the finest white wine was produced, unfortunately not anymore! Given its location close to, yet outside, Paris this neighbourhood became a popular site for immigrants to move to since prices were lower. This is reflected in the area today since about 35 different nationalities are represented here and shops selling African fish, far-fetched spices, and things for cooking I have no idea what to do with. Our guide described this as one of the most vibrant and cosmopolitan areas of Paris, displaying the great number of minority groups which make up the French capital.
Isaac: I went to the historic Arab Paris, a dynamic area of the city that contains evidence of the longstanding relationship between France and the “Arab World.” Our guide took us on a tour of the old and beautiful Arab churches of Saint-Ephrem and Saint Julien le Pauvre. This segment of the tour served to dispel the false conflation between Arabs and Muslims, as well as introduce us to the longstanding presence of Arabs in Paris since the beginning of the 19th century. In addition we explored the exquisite Grande Mosquée de Paris, an intricately designed and constructed mosque built by the French government in honor of the Arab Muslims that lost their lives fighting for France during the First World War. The mosque’s first Imam is also well known today for his work to rescue Jews from Nazi persecution during the Second World War. It is unfortunate that the cooperative spirit embodied by the mosque’s creation is not reflected in the inter-ethnic and inter religious relations in France today.
The afternoon session started with a talk by Sophie Wahnich from Centre National de Recherche Scientifique who spoke on constructing history in museums. She spoke about the importance of speaking to the visitor’s senses and feelings rather than using only narratives. In a more broad context the consequences of what is and is not represented was discussed, thus the question of whether statues of people such as Christopher Columbus and Saddam Hussein, which for some stand as representations of evil and others as liberators, should be torn down or be left standing. While there seems to be no final answer to this, Sophie reminded us of the importance of introducing a critical discourse around such monuments, urging us to think and reflect upon the past to use it constructively in the present.
Sophie Wahnich’s presentation was followed by a panel discussion on the development of one of the exhibits at the Cité Nationale de l'Histoire de l'Immigration. Historian Maureen Murphy and curator Rémi Dumas-Primbault eloquently outlined the difficulties they faced in designing such an exhibit, capturing our attention with pictures and tales of the harrowing dilemmas they faced in selecting the color scheme and spacial layout of the exhibit’s components. In the end we all gained an appreciation for the remarkable degree of intelligence and labor required to arrange pictures and captions into a coherent and meaningful display. In discussing how historical exhibitions influence visitors the panel emphasised the importance of raising questions rather than giving answers.
The day ended with a reception which gave us the opportunity of meeting and talking to some of the central people of HIA, as well as more time to talk to the other fellows participating in the program, in a relaxed atmosphere.
-Sofie and Isaac
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