In the 1960s, the suburbs were meant to be modern havens for newcomers from rural France, Portugal, Spain, North Africa, and Africa, helping rebuild post-war France. Large housing complexes symbolized this ideal, offering comfort, heating, and electricity. But by the 1980s, disillusionment set in as economic crisis, unemployment, poverty, crime, racism, and police violence took hold. Mohamed Bouhafsi tells the story of a dream that didn’t last.
Fabien Roussel is a French left-wing politician who has served as National Secretary of the French Communist Party (PCF) since 2018. He was elected to represent the 20th constituency of Nord in the National Assembly in 2017.