Evolution loading

Since our integration into the educational system, they have tried to suppress the truth about what was inflicted on our ancestors, grandparents, and parents. At 16, I already wanted to have a voice to speak out against injustices around the world. Later, I became interested in global geopolitical conflicts, but the sources I read did not truly reflect what had been told to me by my parents or in novels depicting the lives of people who had experienced war, genocide, unjust treatment, and inhumane devaluation—much like our parents who came as immigrants to Western countries. In the case of my parents, it was France.

From my earliest childhood, I noticed the lack of respect with which my parents were often treated, particularly in administrative systems, where they faced condescension and disdain simply because their pronunciation of certain words wasn't perfect. However, it is less troubling if an English speaker mispronounces certain words or distorts French expressions. Regardless, as children of immigrants striving to succeed, we believed we had to erase ourselves, even invent another identity, because we did not truly know our own. We became chameleons, trying to blend into every crowd to avoid being noticed. We learned to be quick-witted, and even when we tried to blend in, we would receive comments at work like "you fit the profile well, but if your name were different, it would be even better." At the time, we realized the implications, but wanting to keep our jobs, we swallowed the remarks and let them slide. But with hindsight and age, we no longer let it pass!