Abstract :
[en] Foreigners in their Own Country: Identity and Rejection in France by Lawrence M. Martin (2024) was prompted by a personal experience. The author, who describes himself as being in his late sixties, the son of immigrants to the USA, considered "White" in the USA and fluent in French, was preparing for an ethnography course in France. While staying with an Airbnb host who had emigrated to France from Morocco nearly 30 years earlier, he learnt in conversations with his host about her anguish, as people around her acted as if she did not belong to France. This encounter sparked the idea of conducting an ethnographic study among Airbnb hosts whose online profiles suggested family roots outside France. Race is a loaded concept in French society, and the use of the term is actually rejected. Martin quotes Beaman (2021), who explains that the values of 'liberté, égalité, et fraternité' (liberty, equality, and fraternity) are celebrated in France. The idea is upheld that all individuals are seen and treated as equals as long as they ascribe to French Republican values. As Martin explicates, 'Testing the validity of this position-that being accepted into French society has everything to do with intégration and nothing to do with physical appearance or religion-was the central goal of this ethnographic project' (p. 6). The author recruited participants, explaining his interest in hearing their life stories. Starting in 2016, Martin undertook six trips to France covering different regions and metropolitan areas, staying one or two nights with those who agreed to participate. He conducted uninterrupted autobiographical interviews with 66 people, recording 156 hours of conversation. The interviews lasted between 10 minutes and several hours. Both men and women, with ages ranging from late teens to early seventies, were interviewed, and most were highly educated. The interviewees trace their roots to many parts of the world. The majority originated from former French colonies, yet
