Samira Bellil

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Samira Bellil (born November 24, 1972 in Algiers , Algeria , † September 4, 2004 in Paris ) was a French feminist and activist for the rights of girls and women .

Bellil became known in France with the publication of her autobiographical book Dans l'enfer des tournantes ("In the hell of gang rape ") in 2002. The book deals with the violence she and other young women suffered in the predominantly immigrant and Muslim suburbs of Paris , where they were raped several times as teenagers by groups of Muslim men whose leaders they knew and then left alone by friends and families has been. Her book is a portrait of the predicament of young girls in the poor, remote suburbs of French cities ( banlieues ).

The book is available in German under the title “Through the Hell of Violence” (translated by Gaby Wurster).

Life

Bellil was born in Algiers to Algerian parents , but her family emigrated to France and settled in the Paris suburb of Val-d'Oise . Her father was sentenced to prison almost immediately and she was raised by a family in Belgium for 5 years before being sent back to her family.

As a teenager, Bellil rebelled against the limitations imposed by the traditional Islamic gender roles represented in her community and wanted to live freely as a young French woman.

She was first raped by a group when she was 14 and knew the leader of the group. She was viciously beaten and raped all night. A month later, one of the most violent assailants in the group followed her and pulled her hair off a train while other passengers looked away. She was then brutally raped by him again.

She did not report her rapes until two friends reported that the same group had sexually assaulted her as well. She decided to turn to the French legal system to hold her attackers accountable. Ultimately, the leader of the group was sentenced to eight years in prison.

Bellil's parents, who found her presence as a shame, expelled her from their home. She describes that such acts are known within the community, but not outside due to the unwritten requirement of silence. Finally she found a psychologist who could help her. She describes how after several years of therapy she decided to write a book to help other young women who had also been gang rape victims and to find a way out. In her dedication she writes "For my fellow sufferers in misery. So that they know that one can get out. It is difficult and tedious, but it is possible." She wrote under her real name and the cover shows her face.

Later she worked as a social worker. She died of stomach cancer on September 4, 2004, at the age of 31 .

Ni Putes Ni Soumises

Bellil helped found a young women activist group called Ni Putes Ni Soumises ("neither whores nor submissives") to publicly address the issue of violence against young women in France. The group got the attention of the French and European press by organizing marches and press conferences to raise awareness of the dramatic situation of young women in the French banlieues. Bellil denounced the gang rapes known as tournantes or "getting around" and described how she overcame her traumatic experiences and the need for revenge.

Also under the influence of Bellil's book and the activities of Ni Putes Ni Soumises, the French government and the mayor of Paris began to investigate the problem of violence against young women in French Muslim communities.

Official awards

Bellil was chosen as one of the new Mariannes , the new faces of France. The portrait made for this purpose hung outside the palace that houses the French National Assembly .

In 2005, a French school in l'Île-Saint-Denis was named after her: Ecole Samira Bellil .

Web links

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Studies on the phenomenon of tournantes

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ DNB 971183686
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g The Guardian, obituary .
  3. ↑ Strauss, Leah: To Hell and Back. The Life of Samira Bellil in: Booklist, September 15, 2008, Vol. 105 Issue 2, p. 8
  4. ↑ Bellil, Samira: Through the hell of violence, Blanvalet, Munich, 2005, p. 5
  5. ↑ Elaine Sciolino: Paris Journal. Back to barricades, equality, sisterhood , August 1, 2003, at nytimes.com , accessed March 15, 2015
personal data
SURNAME Bellil, Samira
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Algerian-French feminist, activist and author
DATE OF BIRTH November 24, 1972
PLACE OF BIRTH Algiers , Algeria
DATE OF DEATH September 4, 2004
Place of death Paris