I'm a black male grad student at Duke right now and may go to CERN to work at the Large Hadron Collider on the Franco Swiss border so I'm using your France and Switzerland reviews for my travels. I see you're from Durham so your perspective is useful to me since i live in Durham. I'm originally from NYC though. Thanks for these videos.
About your bad experience with police, the attitude is not different towards white natives French people like me. I remember one time I was walking in the streets of Paris and being stopped rudely by a policeman putting his hand on my shoulder. He asked me aggressively: “what are you hiding in your hand ?”. You see, I’m a smoker (yeah I know, how stereotypical…), and I wanted to light a cigarette but my lighter died out, so I kept the cigarette inside my hand until I’d cross someone that I could ask for a light. So it took me a few seconds to realize that, as it was happening while I walked past those policemen, they thought that it was a joint that I tried to hide from them. I was in a very good mood that day, so I just bursted out laughing and showed the guy my regular boring filter cigarette and my empty gas lighter. He kept his very unpleasant suspicious face all the while and just ended saying “Alright, you can move on.” and turned his back and left without any kind of apology or just simple politeness. As I said, I’m white, born French, and at the time I was past my thirties and not dressed any different than anyone else on the street. I had few Parisian police controls in my life but they almost always were an unpleasant experience because they never bother to be polite even when it turned out you did nothing wrong. So even though there undoubtedly is racial and age profiling going on (especially in Paris) for those controls, they don’t have double standards on how they behave during them. Whatever your skin color, nationality or social background is, they are pretty rude and never apologize if they made a mistake.
YES! I am English but have lived in America for 43 years, even so I have an English accent and there may not be racism, but there is certainly an 'attitude' towards the English especially since Brexit!
Glad you shared your experince Paris is definitely on our list of places to visit and we were curious as to how we'd be treated there. Also thanks to you we've now added Grenoble to our list we like to avoid the touristy areas because as you mentioned they tend to be "Americanize" and we're seeking the local experience SAFELY.
Ahh I'm really happy you could take that advice. I'll post some live footage of my time in Grenoble and I don't think that city will disappoint you! I'm always also dodging the tourist traps so we're in line there haha. Thank you!
Hiiii! I love your videos and the way you tell stories about your travels. I've also been to France 3 times and experienced it from a touristic perspective as well as visiting some natives that showed me a great time. I've come away from the experience with the feeling that France and its people VERY complex. It is one of the countries with the most Black residents, most of whom are African and West Indian but also has a long-standing history with Black folks from the US. To me, I think that French people are just generally kind of curmudgeon-y and that attitude can be off-putting yet super endearing once you get to know some of them well. They are very cynical but also passionate so sometimes those "high" standards can express themselves in a really funny and interesting way. I totally believe that you were racially profiled by the police during your first visit, however its hard to say whether that interaction would've been different in another white-majority city. I can imagine that it was definitely infuriating for you either way. My experience was a little different as a Black American woman as I also was escorted by a French-speaking man. Anyway I just came to say, please go back! Check out Rennes and Lyon in particular (more youthful, chill vibe) and see if there are some local events you can drop in on. If you ever want to chat more about it, I'd love to hear from you! - Much love from Detroit
Heyy I really appreciate you letting me know your experiences and for the thoughtful comment. It's definitely a different experience to explore a town by a local's side and I believe that's the best way to see a new part of the world. I've only stopped through Lyon on a road trip and didn't get to experience it so I'll definitely return and get some suggestions from you before embarking! Thanks again for sharing my friend! :)
if you wanna visit the beach side of France i highy recommend La Rochelle city, it's about Grenoble's size but on the west coast, you'll get the small city expereience with an amaizing old town and of cource the ocean
Hey, me and my friends are going to France from London. Could you tell me what the hotspots are are where most black people go e.g. clubs, bar, restaurants - do u have any ideas
I would say the Netherlands in my experience. They've done their dirt around the globe with colonialism as well but in the country things are mild and I really feel safe and happy living here.
Americans see everywhere in American terms..try and stop usng the latest 'buzz ' PC words like 'colonialism or race. etc.. things are very different in the rest of the world and very different in each of the countries. Don't forget that an American President took his common law wife and son with him to France when he was Ambassador. He explained to them that in France they would be free, but when, or if, they returned they would once more be classed as slaves. I think the son stayed in France, but I am not sure. His wife came back. His will, when he died, freed her from slavery, which he could not do in life because she would have to leave her home and family and be cast out under American laws, so he waited until he died to free her. America is a fine place, but it does have some blind spots. If you travel, leave your American ideas and prejudices at home. Read the history. learn the truth .
Its nice you maintained to be very polite in regard to Parisian racism. I speak a little french and I am not very fond of racism considering being very outspoken and knowing history between ancient White people and Original Africans. However everyone should gather a personal experience for themselves altho I debate of supporting European vacation destinations as well as being a very informed black American man. You seem like a nice guy👍🏾
Blah blah all I ever hear from AA is black & white. If we are going to talk about ancient white history why not talk about ancient black history. Like the Africans that captured our ancestors and sold them into slavery. Or how damn near every body worldwide was a slave at one point. It's not exclusive to Africans
You should learn about history of zfrican americans in France during the XXth century from ww1 stories of Eugene Bullard to Harlem Hell Fighters, jazz musicians in Paris, artists or writers like Chester Himes and Richard Wright. Africans are in France soil since 3 generations. They have the problems of migrants living in suburbs for most of them.
Actually something physical did happen Your Blood Pressure Increased Cortisol level increased your sense of safety decreased all events occurred and add up over time internally with each micro and macro aggression you experience 😢
Yes, I went to Paris. Did not like it. People were not friendly. Reminds me of NY. Went to a Paris restaurant, we were treated awful. Always wanted to go, it let me down😢
Yea I know the feeling, especially after it being hyped up all our lives. It seems to be a mega city thing with the people being that way. And there are so many lovely places in France outside of Paris. Thanks for sharing!
Most of american goes to vandome-Champs Élysée - Rivoli etc where they will not see plenty of black community. As a black english, i know where to go to feel welcome !
Hearing your experience in Paris is very disturbing. Hopefully it's not a citywide attitude towards beautiful people of color. And I'm definitely hoping Paris and France in general is better than that. As a black dude I'm considering moving to Europe and france is one of my top choices. It's also one of those European countries which is easier to gain residency for Americans. Here's hoping you had a one off day encountering special people. There was nothing about you that deserve anything but respect.
I am sorry for you, but we should not take everything for racism. you were stopped in the middle of a tourist crossing. There are many pickpockets in Paris who wait for tourists to pass by to steal them. If you had continued walking he probably wouldn't have said anything to you. I myself had the misfortune of stopping like that right in the middle of the tourists who were circulating near the Louvre pyramid. My mistake is that I remained standing when I could have sat on one of the fountain edges. Two security guards, not very friendly, came to ask me what I was doing standing there. They asked me to move out of the way or to sit down. However, I am white and French. As for you, when they understood that you were just waiting for your friend who was taking photos, they didn't insist. We need to stop seeing racism everywhere. Just because you're black doesn't mean you shouldn't be screened like everyone else, especially in these very secure tourist places. ;-)
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I'm a black male grad student at Duke right now and may go to CERN to work at the Large Hadron Collider on the Franco Swiss border so I'm using your France and Switzerland reviews for my travels. I see you're from Durham so your perspective is useful to me since i live in Durham. I'm originally from NYC though. Thanks for these videos.
About your bad experience with police, the attitude is not different towards white natives French people like me.
I remember one time I was walking in the streets of Paris and being stopped rudely by a policeman putting his hand on my shoulder. He asked me aggressively: “what are you hiding in your hand ?”. You see, I’m a smoker (yeah I know, how stereotypical…), and I wanted to light a cigarette but my lighter died out, so I kept the cigarette inside my hand until I’d cross someone that I could ask for a light. So it took me a few seconds to realize that, as it was happening while I walked past those policemen, they thought that it was a joint that I tried to hide from them. I was in a very good mood that day, so I just bursted out laughing and showed the guy my regular boring filter cigarette and my empty gas lighter. He kept his very unpleasant suspicious face all the while and just ended saying “Alright, you can move on.” and turned his back and left without any kind of apology or just simple politeness.
As I said, I’m white, born French, and at the time I was past my thirties and not dressed any different than anyone else on the street.
I had few Parisian police controls in my life but they almost always were an unpleasant experience because they never bother to be polite even when it turned out you did nothing wrong. So even though there undoubtedly is racial and age profiling going on (especially in Paris) for those controls, they don’t have double standards on how they behave during them. Whatever your skin color, nationality or social background is, they are pretty rude and never apologize if they made a mistake.
YES! I am English but have lived in America for 43 years, even so I have an English accent and there may not be racism, but there is certainly an 'attitude' towards the English especially since Brexit!
Glad you shared your experince Paris is definitely on our list of places to visit and we were curious as to how we'd be treated there. Also thanks to you we've now added Grenoble to our list we like to avoid the touristy areas because as you mentioned they tend to be "Americanize" and we're seeking the local experience SAFELY.
Ahh I'm really happy you could take that advice. I'll post some live footage of my time in Grenoble and I don't think that city will disappoint you! I'm always also dodging the tourist traps so we're in line there haha. Thank you!
Happy you travelled and happier you repp Netherlands!!!!
Thanks my friend!
Hiiii! I love your videos and the way you tell stories about your travels. I've also been to France 3 times and experienced it from a touristic perspective as well as visiting some natives that showed me a great time. I've come away from the experience with the feeling that France and its people VERY complex. It is one of the countries with the most Black residents, most of whom are African and West Indian but also has a long-standing history with Black folks from the US. To me, I think that French people are just generally kind of curmudgeon-y and that attitude can be off-putting yet super endearing once you get to know some of them well. They are very cynical but also passionate so sometimes those "high" standards can express themselves in a really funny and interesting way. I totally believe that you were racially profiled by the police during your first visit, however its hard to say whether that interaction would've been different in another white-majority city. I can imagine that it was definitely infuriating for you either way. My experience was a little different as a Black American woman as I also was escorted by a French-speaking man. Anyway I just came to say, please go back! Check out Rennes and Lyon in particular (more youthful, chill vibe) and see if there are some local events you can drop in on. If you ever want to chat more about it, I'd love to hear from you! - Much love from Detroit
Heyy I really appreciate you letting me know your experiences and for the thoughtful comment. It's definitely a different experience to explore a town by a local's side and I believe that's the best way to see a new part of the world. I've only stopped through Lyon on a road trip and didn't get to experience it so I'll definitely return and get some suggestions from you before embarking! Thanks again for sharing my friend! :)
Absolutely gorgeous content bud, this was filmed and narrated absolutely fantastically! Great channel 🔥🔥
Thank you my friend 😊
if you wanna visit the beach side of France i highy recommend La Rochelle city, it's about Grenoble's size but on the west coast, you'll get the small city expereience with an amaizing old town and of cource the ocean
Ahh I'd never heard of La Rochelle city, but I'll remember that one next time I visit France
It’s baaaack 🙌🏾
Ya already knoowwwwwww
Haha the thumbnail! 😂🎉
Haha picture taken in France with my bro
Hey, me and my friends are going to France from London. Could you tell me what the hotspots are are where most black people go e.g. clubs, bar, restaurants - do u have any ideas
There's another commenter in the section of this video named Peter that have some good tips about this!
After 3 months people ask you for directions
Those incidents are messed up. Out of France, England & the Netherlands. Which in your opinion has the better race relations.
I would say the Netherlands in my experience. They've done their dirt around the globe with colonialism as well but in the country things are mild and I really feel safe and happy living here.
Americans see everywhere in American terms..try and stop usng the latest 'buzz ' PC words like 'colonialism or race. etc.. things are very different in the rest of the world and very different in each of the countries.
Don't forget that an American President took his common law wife and son with him to France when he was Ambassador. He explained to them that in France they would be free, but when, or if, they returned they would once more be classed as slaves. I think the son stayed in France, but I am not sure.
His wife came back. His will, when he died, freed her from slavery, which he could not do in life because she would have to leave her home and family and be cast out under American laws, so he waited until he died to free her. America is a fine place, but it does have some blind spots. If you travel, leave your American ideas and prejudices at home. Read the history. learn the truth .
How long were you there tourist?
Its nice you maintained to be very polite in regard to Parisian racism. I speak a little french and I am not very fond of racism considering being very outspoken and knowing history between ancient White people and Original Africans. However everyone should gather a personal experience for themselves altho I debate of supporting European vacation destinations as well as being a very informed black American man.
You seem like a nice guy👍🏾
Blah blah all I ever hear from AA is black & white. If we are going to talk about ancient white history why not talk about ancient black history. Like the Africans that captured our ancestors and sold them into slavery. Or how damn near every body worldwide was a slave at one point. It's not exclusive to Africans
You should learn about history of zfrican americans in France during the XXth century from ww1 stories of Eugene Bullard to Harlem Hell Fighters, jazz musicians in Paris, artists or writers like Chester Himes and Richard Wright. Africans are in France soil since 3 generations. They have the problems of migrants living in suburbs for most of them.
Actually something physical did happen Your Blood Pressure Increased Cortisol level increased your sense of safety decreased all events occurred and add up over time internally with each micro and macro aggression you experience 😢
Yes, I went to Paris. Did not like it. People were not friendly. Reminds me of NY. Went to a Paris restaurant, we were treated awful. Always wanted to go, it let me down😢
Yea I know the feeling, especially after it being hyped up all our lives. It seems to be a mega city thing with the people being that way. And there are so many lovely places in France outside of Paris. Thanks for sharing!
How do you know you were treated awful? Do you speak French?
I just came back from Paris. I loved it and I'm from NYC and don't speak French ...but I tried to 😊
@@GtheBarber exactly. The fashion game over there is insane! The pizza oh lawd
Most of american goes to vandome-Champs Élysée - Rivoli etc where they will not see plenty of black community.
As a black english, i know where to go to feel welcome !
Where do you go in Paris?
@@Naturalwanders châtelet - Les Halles- Rivoli- Quaie de la Seine - château d’eau - Château Rouge… then some banlieu because i know some fam there,
@@Peter-uk3oe nice I'm gonna remember those for next time. Thanks!
@@Peter-uk3oe hey me and my friends are going for the weekend out of those listed which do u think is worth visiting
Much black people in ftance but i respect
✊🏾
@@Naturalwanders yeah
If he goes to champs Élysée, vandome etc like all of americans, of course he won’t see many of them
There are NO black people in France. There are NO AFRO FRANCE OR AFRO FRENCH. In France everyone is French regardless of what they look like.
Hearing your experience in Paris is very disturbing. Hopefully it's not a citywide attitude towards beautiful people of color. And I'm definitely hoping Paris and France in general is better than that. As a black dude I'm considering moving to Europe and france is one of my top choices. It's also one of those European countries which is easier to gain residency for Americans. Here's hoping you had a one off day encountering special people. There was nothing about you that deserve anything but respect.
I am sorry for you, but we should not take everything for racism. you were stopped in the middle of a tourist crossing. There are many pickpockets in Paris who wait for tourists to pass by to steal them. If you had continued walking he probably wouldn't have said anything to you. I myself had the misfortune of stopping like that right in the middle of the tourists who were circulating near the Louvre pyramid. My mistake is that I remained standing when I could have sat on one of the fountain edges. Two security guards, not very friendly, came to ask me what I was doing standing there. They asked me to move out of the way or to sit down. However, I am white and French. As for you, when they understood that you were just waiting for your friend who was taking photos, they didn't insist. We need to stop seeing racism everywhere. Just because you're black doesn't mean you shouldn't be screened like everyone else, especially in these very secure tourist places. ;-)
Bro please tell me you smashed Bethany 🤣