AATF Convention San Diego 2024

African Americans have long considered France an oasis from discrimination and oppression. This presentation first explores the roots of this unique relationship through historic events including the 1900 Paris Exposition, World War I, and the Harlem Renaissance. Next, it highlights how these experiences inspired French colonial writers such as Aimé Césaire to found the Négritude movement which asserts: “Affirmation that one is black and proud of it.”