PARIS – A group of French citizens, researchers, and community activists have signed an open letter calling for an investigation into the hateful and racist comments made last Friday by former French minister Noëlle Lenoir against Algerian nationals in France during a program broadcast on the CNews television channel.
In the letter, endorsed by numerous public figures and published Wednesday in the French daily l’Humanité, the signatories appealed to the Defender of Rights, the president of ARCOM (the French audiovisual and digital communications regulator), and the Paris public prosecutor. “By portraying all Algerian nationals as dangerous individuals, these remarks amount to collective stigmatization. They form part of a hate-filled discourse based on national origin, undermining the dignity and equality of millions of people, in a context where racial discrimination persists in France,” the letter states.
The signatories stressed that audiovisual media, under ARCOM’s oversight, have a legal obligation not to broadcast content that incites hatred or violence, with possible sanctions ranging from fines to suspension of broadcasting. “You, as the Defender of Rights, the President of ARCOM, and the Paris public prosecutor, have the power to act on your own initiative in such cases. We know that your institutions have already been contacted by associations, elected officials, and/or citizens. We urge you to take up this case and handle it within the scope of your respective mandates,” they wrote, also calling for “greater vigilance from political leaders and the media to prevent the normalization of such remarks, which run counter to republican values.”
Last Friday, Noëlle Lenoir, who served as France’s Minister for European Affairs between 2002 and 2004, accused “millions of Algerians” in France of being potential criminals “capable of posing major risks,” without being challenged by the program’s host on CNews.
