“A Man Among Men” in Algerian Paris: Modeling Motivation and Movement in Jake Lamar’s Rendezvous Eighteenth

"Algerian Paris" Revisited: Mairie of the Eighteenth

Ricky has worked in the Eighteenth Arrondissement without a permit since his arrival in Paris, and his tourist Visa has long expired (307). However, when he is brought into custody by detective Lamouche regarding the murder of a prostitute in his building, he is threatened with deportation if he is noncompliant. His status is compared to an African’s in Paris. Detective Lamouche tells Ricky, “‘You have no official status here. No card of residence,’ […]. At your job, you are paid in cash. You pay your landlady in cash each month. If you were African you would have been kicked out of ze country long ago. But you are American, so we let you stay. You like it here?’” (45). Lamouche’s comments make it clear that Ricky does not belong in Paris without official papers, and he is experiencing the generosity of the French because he is American. Ricky seems to be spared deportation, but only to the extent that he cooperates with law enforcement. Though different circumstances, African-Americans who were guests in France between April 3, 1955 and June 2, 1958 (during the period of censorship) experienced the threat of deportation if they spoke about the Algerian War (Stora 251, 254). Clearly, there are limits to African-American privilege in Paris, and the limits of this privilege gives a glimpse into the suppression and harassment that other minorities face in Algerian Paris. Also, Lamar addressing the limits of privilege exposes the implicit racism and acceptance at the root of carte nationale d’identité checks and African-American silence. 
 

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