Watch & Discuss: Ethnic-based statistics in France, Why Not?

Amandine Gay's documentary Ouvrir la voix is a series of personal interviews of French and Belgian Black women. During this event, we will watch part of this documentary about the necessity for ethnic-based statistics in France. On the website of the Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (Insee), we can read the following:

In its decision of 15 November 2007, the Constitutional Council forbade the processing of data necessary for carrying out studies regarding diversity which infringe the principle laid down in Article 1 of the Constitution.

As a result, the following were prohibited:

- the processing of data of a personal nature indicating directly or indirectly the racial or ethnic origins of persons.
- the introduction of variables of race or religion in administrative records. This applied to the National directory for the identification of natural persons.

In its commentary, the Constitutional Council stipulated that the a priori definition of an "ethno-racial classification" would be contrary to the Constitution.

Come listen to the testimonies of Amandine Gay's brilliantly-chosen panel women about this subject. After visioning part of the documentary, we will have about 15 to 20 minutes to share our thoughts and discuss together.