Ode to the Alliance Frances in Atar

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Many of you have heard of the idea of a French alliance. There is probably one in every major city in the US. The idea is that people in other countries can learn the culture of the French, and thus the French culture will spread and stay alive. We have one such center here in Atar, and it is terrific. The center offers all kind of resources, centering on language training. For the equivalent of about $14, anyone in Atar can take a 2 month long course in French, with a heavy emphasis on practical applications.

I have been taking one of these classes, and have enjoyed it thoroughly. It allows me to learn language in a classroom environment, and interact with other classmates in French. At the same time, it gives me a window into a big part of Mauritanian life. Many Mauritanian students study ferociously. They go to high school from 8 am to 2 pm, in 2 hour classes, but that’s just the beginning. When they come home, they are greeted by French tutors, math tutors, physics tutors, and English tutors, who usually keep them occupied until 6pm, when they go to their French class. Weekends, too, are filled up by tutors for everyone who can afford them. This is because in Mauritania, there is only one accredited University, and the only way to get in, aside from bribing someone (not uncommon), is to take a standardized test, called “the Bac”, and have one of the few best scores for a particular year, which means getting in something like the 95th percentile for Mauritania. Mauritanian citizens know that getting a visa to study anywhere else would be very difficult, and that if they want to work professionally, they will almost have to go to university, so they study like crazy. I’ve always had a appreciation for our monetary wealth as Americans, but being here has helped me appreciate the opportunities we are given to excel. In America there are so many avenues into professional and academic life, respecting so many types of intelligence and giving students so many opportunities to start taking their studies seriously. In Mauritania, there is one test, with many components in only one language (French), and if you can’t beat almost everyone in the country, you lose, it’s as simple as that.

This is a big part of why the classes at the Alliance are such a great gift to the Mauritanian people; it gives everyone the ability to study and improve their French, as almost everyone can choose to afford $14. The alliance does not only teach French, it also throws various cultural events for the Mauritanian citizens. One of these was a big concert in Atar, staring a Pulaar artist from Kaédi. The alliance put on the show, and invited all the students for free, and charged a nominal fee for all other attendees. The stadium was completely packed, and the crowed loved it. Not only was the concert a success, but it helped bring people togeather in a big way. There is a huge rift in Mauritania, between the richer and more powerful Moores in the north, including Atar, and the more numerous Pulaars in the South, so bringing a Pulaar artist to Atar, singing songs in Pulaar, and inviting a bunch of moore students to come and enjoy her songs helps unite the country.

I, naturally, went to the concert myself, and had an amazing time. The crowd was filled with mostly moores, but all the Pulaars sat right up front, and shared in some pulaar jokes with the singer. I sat up front, as well, with a couple of Mauritanian friends. It was the first of hopefully many unforgettable times when I just hung out as a Mauritanian, enjoying the sites.

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Comments

[spud]

Art Does it Again!
It sounds very joyful. And your discription of the hard-working students pulls at my heart. Here, they are closing down schools, because the Bush administration does not share your appreciation of opportunities for students. Although he has recently suggested that he can sell OUR public lands, OUR forests, OUR beautiful open spaces, and OUR unique environments, to his cronies, for a nominal fee, that we could then use for education. I sound so cynical.....perhaps a good concert would cheer me.