more than a thousand people signed a support forum
Sophie Djigo, philosopher and preparatory class teacher is the target of a violent campaign of harassment orchestrated by the extreme right. His crime: having organized an educational outing around the living conditions of exiles from Calais. More than 1000 people have signed a platform of support.
She had not expected such an outburst of violence. Sophie Djigo, philosopher and preparatory class teacher at the Lycée Watteau in Valenciennes, had planned to organize an educational outing in Calais on December 2. The aim is to make them aware of the living conditions of those exiled from the coast and to show the organization of solidarity on the spot.
But his project circulated until it reached the circles of far-right activists, including ex-presidential candidate Eric Zemmour, who had already been repeatedly convicted of incitement to hatred. This one signs a tweet in which he accuses the professor “indoctrination” at the service of “great replacement”a concept developed in far-right circles without any scientific validity.
This was enough to place a target on the head of the philosophy professor: insults, threats, personal address put into circulation… Police protection was granted to Sophie Djigo.
To answer, more than a thousand people assured the philosophy of their full support in a column published on the website of World, this December 5th. Many professors or researchers are signatories of this forum, in which we also find some more public figures such as the Nobel Prize for Literature Annie Ernaux or the deputy of the North Ugo Bernalicis.
“Sophie Djigo is both a philosopher and an activist, whose solidarity action, particularly effective and good, is linked to a deep reflection as a researcher and to an intellectually demanding, recognized and high-level teaching activity in the system of education. “higher public education” remind the authors of the tribune.
“The rectorate has, moreover, decided to support her by filing a complaint for defamation. And yet, she had to give up the organization of a meeting between her students and the volunteers of the Auberge des migrants, in Calais, by fear of a violent descent of xenophobic associations which revealed the date.
All demanding signatories “a clear government response” to “a truly coordinated and uninhibited offensive, most particularly in the North at this time, where other academic colleagues are collectively under similar attack.”
Contacted by us, Sophie Djigo said she was extremely touched by this solidarity shown and saw in it the recognition of her work. Exhausted by the situation she is going through, the teacher salutes the collective dimension of what she is going through because, she says: ” many other teacher-researchers, everywhere in France, are victims of intimidation.” With the support of her students and a number of their parents, she denounces these threats as ” an attack on academic and pedagogical freedom.” Today on sick leave for a period of two weeks, Sophie Djigo has filed a complaint for cyberbullying and death threats, but does not yet know what legal follow-up will be given to this proven situation.