It was October 2023, just before the All Saints’ Day holidays. A 32-year-old history-geography teacher in a high school in the Paris region, Stéphane (1) then gave a lesson to a first-year class, planned in the program, on the second Chechen war in the early 2000s. “I spoke about this war in Chechnya saying that among those who fought against the Russians and for the independence of their country, there were also Islamists who were motivated by religious reasons,” explains the teacher, adding that he told his students that certain countries, including France, were then able to demonstrate a certain naivety in the face of “Islamist terrorism” in the following years.
Then he quickly recalls an event which, like many teachers, made him “terribly shaken” : the death a few days earlier of Dominique Bernard, a French teacher, killed in Arras by a young man of Ingush origin who claimed responsibility for his actions in the name of the Islamic State organization.
“You’re more (sic) like Samuel Paty”
“Of the 25 students in the class, four or five reacted. A student stood up and said that it was not possible to say that what had just happened in Arras was an Islamist attack. She added that there were videos on TikTok saying otherwise. She was very virulent with a lack of respect towards me. So I excluded her from the class. Then other students went on to talk about what Israel was doing in Gaza in response to the October 7 attack by Hamas. They said that “crazy people and dead people are everywhere”. I responded that now was not the time to broach the subject of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A student then said that “Hamas should get rid of all the Jews…” Faced with these unacceptable comments, I excluded her too. »
After the holidays, Stéphane returns to his class. The first excluded student is present. “She withdrew her comments, affirming that behind the term Islamist, she had felt an attack against Islam and against all Muslims,” explains Stéphane. The second student, who does not deny anything she said, goes to the disciplinary council and is sanctioned with an exclusion accompanied by a suspended sentence. Then nothing happens until the appearance, in December, of a tag on a high school wall. Stéphane’s last name appears there followed by the inscription “You’re more (sic) like Samuel Paty, fdp (“son of a bitch”, Editor’s note) ».
“The institution reacted quickly and efficiently”
As soon as the tag was discovered, the author(s) of which will never be identified, the assistant principal told Stéphane that he must be removed immediately from the establishment for his safety. “I think that the rectorate had learned lessons from what had happened spent with Samuel Paty and that it was indeed more reasonable for me to stop coming to school, at least temporarily. So I found myself at home overnight. The commissioner of the town where I live called me and told me that a Bac (anti-crime brigade) patrol would pass by my house every day. This is what happened. Every evening, the police knocked on my door to see if everything was okay. I had the feeling that the institution had reacted quickly and effectively regarding my protection. Even if, at the time, I was shocked and revolted to be assigned to my home, without being able to teach. Whereas I had just done my job as a teacher. »
After some negotiations with the rectorate, Stéphane was assigned this year to a high school in another city where he feels good. “We agreed to review my situation in two years,” confides the teacher who was able to measure in this test the difficulty of talking about certain subjects today, in class. “As a history and geography teacher, you inevitably feel exposed. The death of Samuel Paty had a big impact on me, that’s obvious. When this happened, it was my second year on the job. Then there was Dominique Bernard killed by this young man who, according to testimonies, then entered the high school looking for a history-geography teacher… »notes Stéphane who, although still young in the profession, appreciates the extent to which the view of teachers has changed. “I have the impression that, for certain students, we are no longer seen as people who are there to transmit knowledge but as representatives of the State and of an authority that must be challenged. A bit like the police. »
Despite what he experienced, Stéphane says he “not afraid” to present himself in front of his students every day. “I feel that, perhaps, some teachers, consciously or unconsciously, censor themselves. They may be avoiding certain topics. There is undoubtedly a fear among some of being accused of Islamophobia or racism by students because it is then difficult to defend themselves. What is certain is that it is not normal, today in a country like France, to be afraid of teaching. »
(1) The first name has been changed.
