France. African Frenchmen

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Kylian Mbappe, the French soccer phenomenon with his father Wilfrid Mbappe, 
who was born in Cameroon, one of the former French colonies. 

Visiting France for the first time? I don’t know what you are expecting but I hope it’s not what you see online, people posing for photos outside places, like the Louvre.

Whatever your expectations are, I don’t want complaints about “too many black people” in Paris. Certain countries tolerate just a teaspoon of us. A whole tablespoon becomes a problem. You’ll see a lot of beautiful people in France for two main reasons.

First of all, we’ve already discussed how some African Americans decided to remain in France after World War 11, and my Top 10 readers can attest to that. Black soldiers didn’t want to return home to America to face Jim Crow humiliation, prison life and joblessness, after valiantly fighting for their country.

Secondly, you’ll find many Africans in Paris because of French ‘civilization’ that came through the barrel of a gun. So relax. You’ll see Frenchmen like Kylian Mbappe, born and raised in France or whose parents came from Africa. These are former French colonies.

Algeria

Benin

Burkina Faso

Cameroon

Republic of the Congo

Gambia

Guinea

Mali

Senegal

Togo

Upper Volta

Niger

This is good news for you as a tourist. If you are lost, go ahead, ask a black person. Some speak better French than men who run France because of money and politics. You’ll also come across food and music from Africa, and I hope you love soccer.  France does.

Nonqaba waka Msimang

Blogger Without Borders

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