Native Sons , livre ebook

345

pages

English

Ebooks

2006

Écrit par
Mann Gregory Mann

Publié par
Duke University Press

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345

pages

English

Ebooks

2006

Lire un extrait

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne En savoir plus

Publié par

Duke University Press

Date de parution

19 juillet 2006

Nombre de lectures

EAN13

9780822387817

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

For much of the twentieth century, France recruited colonial subjects from sub-Saharan Africa to serve in its military, sending West African soldiers to fight its battles in Europe, Southeast Asia, and North Africa. In this exemplary contribution to the "new imperial history," Gregory Mann argues that this shared military experience between France and Africa was fundamental not only to their colonial relationship but also to the reconfiguration of that relationship in the postcolonial era. Mann explains that in the early twenty-first century, among Africans in France and Africa, and particularly in Mali-where Mann conducted his research-the belief that France has not adequately recognized and compensated the African veterans of its wars is widely held and frequently invoked. It continues to animate the political relationship between France and Africa, especially debates about African immigration to France.Focusing on the period between World War I and 1968, Mann draws on archival research and extensive interviews with surviving Malian veterans of French wars to explore the experiences of the African soldiers. He describes the effects their long absences and infrequent homecomings had on these men and their communities, he considers the veterans' status within contemporary Malian society, and he examines their efforts to claim recognition and pensions from France. Mann contends that Mali is as much a postslavery society as it is a postcolonial one, and that specific ideas about reciprocity, mutual obligation, and uneven exchange that had developed during the era of slavery remain influential today, informing Malians' conviction that France owes them a "blood debt" for the military service of African soldiers in French wars.

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Publié par

Duke University Press

Date de parution

19 juillet 2006

EAN13

9780822387817

Langue

English

Poids de l'ouvrage

1 Mo

Native Sons

politics, history, and culture A series from the International Institute at the University of Michigan

series editors: George Steinmetz and Julia Adams

series editorial advisory board: Fernando Coronil Nancy Rose Hunt Mamadou Diouf Andreas Kalyvas Michael Dutton Webb Keane Geo√ Eley David Laitin Fatma Müge Göcek Lydia Liu

Julie Skurski Margaret Somers Ann Laura Stoler Katherine Verdery Elizabeth Wingrove

Sponsored by the International Institute at the University of Michigan and published by Duke University Press, this series is centered around cultural and historical studies of power, politics, and the state—a ﬁeld that cuts across the disciplines of history, sociology, anthropology, po-litical science, and cultural studies. The focus on the relationship be-tween state and culture refers both to a methodological approach—the study of politics and the state using culturalist methods—and to a substantive approach that treats signifying practices as an essential di-mension of politics. The dialectic of politics, culture, and history ﬁgures prominently in all the books selected for the series.

NATIVE SONS

West African Veterans and France in the Twentieth Century

Gregory Mann

DUKE UNIVERSITY PRESS Durham∂London 2006

Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper$ Designed by Jennifer Hill Typeset in Adobe Jenson Pro by Keystone Typesetting, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data appear on the last printed page of this book.

Portions of chapters 2 and 4 previously appeared in ‘‘Locating Colonial Histories: Between France and West Africa,’’American Historical Re-view110, no. 2 (2005): 409–34.

Portions of chapter 5 originally appeared as ‘‘Immigrants and Arguments in France and West Africa,’’Comparative Studies in Society and History 45, no. 2 (2003): 362–85.∫Society for the Comparative Study of Society and History. Reprinted with permission.

Contents

Acknowledgments

introduction

soldier families and slavery’s echoes

2ex-soldiers as unruly clients, 1914–40

veterans and the political wars of1940–60

a military culture on the move: tirailleurs sénégalais in france, africa, and asia

blood debt, immigrants, and arguments

conclusion

Appendix: Interviews Abbreviations Notes References Index

vii

108

146

183

210

217 221 225 295 321

Acknowledgments

working on debt, I incurred many of my own.Native Sons was researched on three continents and written on four. Scores of people helped, hosted, or humored me while I worked to produce it. In Bamako, myjatigiTraore, Ousmane hajiya Madame Traore Miriam Koné, and their family displayed endless patience and generosity.Aw ni bàràji. My deep thanks also to Ali Niane, Dr. Maïga, their families, and their neighbors in Magnambougou Projet. I am very grateful for the hospitality and assistance of Gomba Coulibaly and his family in San and Diabougou. They, along with the Frères du Sacré-Coeur and Brother David Coulibaly, were gracious hosts. Also in San, the Sidibe family was always welcoming, and the Abbé Felix Coulibaly granted me access to the papers of Father Bernard de Rasilly. Attaher Soﬁane assisted me in Koutiala. Adama Sékou Traore showed me some of his father’s private papers. At Kuluba, I am grateful for the goodwill of Ali Ongoïba, director of Mali’s national archives, Alyadjidi Almouctar (Alia) Baby, Timothée Saye, Abdoulaye Traore, and Youssouf Diarra. In Paris and Montreuil, Jennifer and Thomas LaDonne were model friends, just as in Chennai, Mr. and Mrs. Uttam Reddi and Srinivas Mallu and Meenakshi Reddi were model hosts. Many thanks for careful readings and illuminating criticisms to Drs. John O. Hunwick, Jonathon Glassman, Jane I. Guyer, and Robert Launay. Along with Jane, Sara Berry helped me make the transition from ‘‘interested in’’ to ‘‘working on.’’ The support of Myron Echenberg and Nancy Lawler has always been appreciated, as has that

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of David Killingray. I would also like to express my deep appreciation for the guidance of Mamadou Diawara, whose energetic and rigorous Projet Point Sud/Center for Research on Local Knowledge provided me an intellectual home in Bamako. Many thanks also to Seydou Camara, Mamadi Dembele, and their colleagues at theInstitut des Sciences Humaines; Isaie Dougnon offlash/Université de Bamako; Director Modibo Diallo at the Mémorial Modibo Keita; Dolores Koening; Ambassador David Rawson; and Peace Corps Mali, espe-cially Candy Avila and Anne Cullen. Mali’s veterans—and particularly those in San—deserve a salute and much more. Marcia Wright, Fred Cooper, Luise White, Richard Roberts, Nancy Hunt, Laura Lee Downs, Alice Conklin, and Patrick Weil o√ered insights, encouragement, and opportunities. Miranda Pollard brought me into the study of history, and David Schoenbrun brought me into the study of Africa. Tarik Barkawi’s close and rigorous read-ings made the manuscript much stronger than it would otherwise have been. Emmanuelle Saada listened closely and made valuable critiques. Brian Peterson and Julie Livingstone commented incisively on the introduction, and Sandrine Bertaux and Miriam Ticktin gave me a chance to re-think some of the ideas in chapter 5. Ben Soares set an example and helped on many fronts. Baz Lecocq has lived with and contributed to versions of this project in a truly inordinate number of settings. I thank him. Along with Baz, Emily Osborn, Trevor Getz, Richard Fogarty, Ellen Amster, and Shannon Vance were entertaining and generous companions in the archives. Leo Villalòn and Fiona McLaughlin invited me into their salon in Dakar. For hospitality, friendship, and tolerance, I am indebted to Natalie Adamson, Brian and Andrea, Jacqui and Catherine, and Jonny and Jimmy. Emma has a big place in this and everything. Finally, it is both customary and statutory to recognize those who funded research. Thus, in no order, I gratefully acknowledge the sup-port of the Fulbright-iieProgram, the National Security Education Program—Academy for Educational Development (nsep-aed), Northwestern University’s Dissertation Year Fellowship, Columbia University Summer Grant Program in the Humanities, Columbia University’s Institute for Scholars at Reid Hall, the Foreign Language and Area Studies (flas) Program for a summer grant, and the Cama-rgo Foundation. I should also note that portions of chapter 5 appeared inComparative Studies in Society and History2003 and part of in

a c k n o w l e d g m e n t s

chapter 4 touches on points I addressed in an article in theAmerican Historical Review in 2005. All faults and mistakes remain my own responsibility. Lastly, Suchi put up with this manuscript for a long time. I owe her a lot more than can be decently put on an acknowledgments page, and I hope that debt lasts a very, very long time.

a c k n o w l e d g m e n t s

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