-And I got my photo with...-

Ah, where to blog where to blog... today I will tell you about a debate I attended (to listen, not participate).

Back to my exciting celebrity photo event: What you see in the photo above is my self with retired French football player Lilian Thuram, who helped France win the World Cup in 1998.  Since then, he's aspired to equally important work: social activism.  When times got rough in 2005 and Sarkozy referred to the rioting banlieue youth as "scum", Thuram became politically involved - opposing the racism and prejudices.  Since then he's formed an association, written Mes Étoiles Noires: de Lucy a Barack Obama (My Black Stars) as well as co-authored a few other books on banlieues and cultural issues, and regularly speaks to children at schools about the same issues-on their level.  

And Wednesday evening, he came to NYU in France for a debate/discussion with author Francois Durpaire on the subject "Appel pour une République Multiculturelle et Postraciale" (Call for a multicultural and post-racial Republic).  My "France and Islam" professor, Professor Habibi, also teaches at the NYU in France, and she invited us to this forum, as it coincides with much of the cultural tensions we've been studying.  

The entire thing was in French, of course, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was able to follow almost all of the 3 hour debate.  Almost.  Some of the older people in the audience were harder to understand, but Messieurs Thuram and Durpaire spoke clearly enough for even we few American students in the audience.  Most of the guests were professors or politicians, from what I could tell.

 One couple had let their two boys, ages 7 and 9, come along, and they were so patient!  I was very impressed.  When the adults finally wrapped things up and dismissed for hors d'œuvres, desserts, and drinks, those two rushed to Lilian and asked if they could have a picture with him.  Considering myself part of the adult crowd at this function...I waited until the kids were done before I pulled out my camera and made my own request.