The Lilian Thuram Foundation against Racism and for Equality is calling on all citizens to mobilize to prevent parties promoting exclusion, inequality and violence from taking power. The far right invites us to break ties by stigmatizing Muslims, migrants and people with dual nationality, depriving them of an essential thing that each and every one of us must defend: freedom.

Imagine being forbidden to be yourself! How can you look at yourself and accept the idea of a party promoting violence against other people because of their religion, skin color, sexuality or supposed origin? As we all know, the Rassemblement National’s core business has always been anti-Semitism, even if it claims to have outgrown it.

Today, the most open hatred is hatred of Muslims. But hatred breeds hatred, and inevitably each and every one of us will end up suffering from it. History has shown us that hatred first affects the poorest and gradually spreads throughout society. The only way to protect ourselves is to recreate links and build genuine policies of solidarity.

The far right stands with the rich, not the poor

Historically, racist ideology has been a lure to pit the poorest against the poorest. Let’s remember: In the early days of slavery, slaves were both White and Black, and they rebelled against the economic system that mistreated them. To break these revolts, the masters gave advantages to White slaves, saying that only Black slaves would be slaves for life.

At the same time, in France, poor Whites were being exploited and mistreated. Today, in 2024, the Rassemblement National is reactivating this White category by saying that Whites should come first. This explains why Rassemblement National voters include people who were previously stigmatized, Italians, Portuguese, Spaniards, Poles etc. and who have now “become” White.

When will we understand that the real problem is the fair distribution of wealth? When will we understand that the far right is not on the side of the poor, but on the side of the rich? When will this trap stop working? Racism is a firewall to prevent reflection by those who should be revolting for greater equality, greater justice and greater social justice.

The floodgates of violence are already opening. As always, some will say “I didn’t know.” We can’t be neutral in the face of hatred. We can’t condone it. Remaining silent, abstaining from the next elections, means endorsing it. Let’s resist and fight hate. We have to pull together. We cannot collaborate with hatred.