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sree251 I am kabyle, Touareg and Jewish.
I grew up speaking Tamazight languages, French then Arabic, English..etc in school. When I got to live with my Jewish Turkish grandma, I learnt about that side of my heritage and acquired her languages too.
France was ruthless in Algeria because Algerians did not assimilate. They killed one million and half Algerians during the war. It was as bad as they talk about Hitler.
The reason we kabyles speak French is our ability to pick up languages and our need for survival. Not because we accepted the invasion. Just like we speak Arabic and other languages.
France granted education to exceptionally intelligent kids back then. The standards were so high and the goal was to turn Algeria French. They suppressed and sabotaged other existing cultures. They created class systems and divided between Algerian jews and Muslims. Before France, the two lived peacefully.
My ancestors were among those France granted education to. They were doctors, students..that until the war.
My grandfather was drafted to WW2 to fight against the German. France promised Algerians free rule if they fought in their army. When my grandfather came back from the war, he found his little brother, his father and his grandfather all beheaded by the France. Their heads hung rotting in the central square.
France killed thousands of civilians within days. Thousands who were happy WW2 ended and took the opportunity to celebrate in the streets demanding independence.
My grandfather decided to fight and so did thousands of Algerians.
My grandfather was in charge of an entire segment. And the French found out about his secret mariage to my grandmother. They took her as hostage and tortured her for intel.
My grandmother never experienced strife before then. She was a gentle woman who grew up in better circumstances because of her origin.
She was driven to madness.
My grandmother was a good woman. She had life long mental illness because of it. PTSD and likely bipolar. My grandpa loved her so much and all his life he defended her against everyone, even when she might have been too extreme. Because our people owe her our liberty. She didn't have to make those sacrifices. She could have lived a life of privilige but she chose him and Algeria.
Lot of my tribes members died in the war, schools, hospitals, towns, people..are named after them. I may not be the right person to ask about positive changes.
There are exceptions to the cruelty but they are from everyday french people not from the colonialist establishment.
It is long story. France keeps thousands of our skulls in their archives ,they did nuclear experiments in our Sahara, locals there..we don't even know where they buried the waste and they will never tell us. I might very well be sitting on it right now breathing in radiation. They also conducted illegal chemical welfare against civilians and soldiers alike and they used illegal torture and sexual assaults against prisoners...and burnt people alive. .etc it was horrifying war.
I don't like France and I have lot of healing to do. Yes, lot of kabyles immigrate to France and integrate. Kabyles are multicultural and rarely radicalized religiously..lot of political refugees head to France.
But we still have our priorities wherever we go and our recent complex history. I won scholarships and chose Turkey and Canada because I don't like France, to say the least. I wouldn't have had an ounce of peace there.
I have lot of healing to do. Many of us. I do want that one day I don't feel resentful towards France but it is complicated. The France of today is still attempting to sabotage my home for resources. It makes things more difficult for me to move on.
