A groundbreaking overview of the French civil rights movement Ni Putes Ni SoumisesIn 2003, Fadela Amara founded Ni Putes Ni Soumises (NPNS), a French feminist social movement that arose in the banlieues, or impoverished suburbs of Paris. Growing up in the banlieues as a child of Algerian immigrants, Amara became a fierce advocate for the underclass and was later appointed to a post in the French government headed by Nicolas Sarkozy. Led by Amara and devoted to equal rights and opportunities for everyone, NPNS is especially focused on improving conditions for Muslim immigrant women who often suffer from discrimination, violence, and repression.Providing ample context and explanation of the NPNS movement for the first time for English-language readers, editors and translators Brittany Murray and Diane Perpich include unpublished materials from the movement's formative days when women spoke out about the difficulties and violence faced daily in France's ghettos. A discussion with the movement's founder provides additional information about immigration, discrimination, feminism, the headscarf affair, and the rise of Islamic fundamentalism. Taking French Feminism to the Streets provides a penetrating analysis of the social, political, and economic conditions in France.
Introduction: Mapping the Terrain: Ni Putes Ni Soumises in Context Part I - Breaking Ground: The Special Assembly of Women from the Quartiers 1. Women of the Quartiers: A Call to Action; 2. The White Book of the Women of the Quartiers; 3. The Manifesto of Women from the Quartiers; 4. The Petition: Ni Putes Ni Soumises Part II - Taking a Stand: Selected Writings from Scum of the Republic 5. Fadela's Origins; 6. Mohammed's Origins; 7. Immigration; 8. Integration; 9. Discrimination; 10. Equality; 11. Laws of the Projects; 12. Social Violence; 13. The Future Part III: Reflecting on the Path: Resistance and Controversy 14. An Interview with Fadela Amara
''This timely book brings to American readers an understanding of a new French feminist movement originating with Muslim women in the ghettos of France. Through translation of primary texts by Fadela Amara and Mohammed Abdi, a working relationship with the organizers of the Ni Putes Ni Soumises movement, and extensive interviews with activists, the editors transform our understanding of the movement.''--Margaret A. Simons, editor of Simone de Beauvoir's Wartime Diary
