Saint-Pourçain-sur-Sioule. The Blaise-de-Vigeère school campus pays tribute to Samuel Paty and Dominique Bernard. This Monday, October 14, the Blaise-de-Vigeère school campus paid tribute to Samuel Paty and Dominique Bernard.
This event was part of an effort to raise awareness among students of the dangers of religious obscurantism, while emphasizing the importance of freedom of expression in a secular framework.
The principal, Aymeric Hilali, reminded the students of the school campus of the tragic fate of two teachers: Samuel Paty, history and geography teacher, murdered on October 16, 2020 for showing caricatures in a lesson on freedom of expression.
And Dominique Bernard, French teacher, also killed in a terrorist attack in Arras on October 13, 2023.
“These barbaric acts targeted the freedom to teach and the transmission of republican values.”
The principal recalled “the importance of defending the values of Liberty, Equality, Fraternity and secularism in daily school life. Respect for these principles is essential to ensure social cohesion.”
Freedom and responsibility
This tribute is also an opportunity for the teaching team to recall the importance of education in citizenship, tolerance and respect for differences, while encouraging students to demonstrate critical thinking in the context of a democracy.
Such tributes aim to strengthen students’ civic awareness and remind them that freedom and responsibility go hand in hand.
