A nonsensical phrase, allegedly used by undercover police attempting to mimic immigrant youth slang online, has become a viral symbol of France’s ongoing student demonstrations.
Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators have flooded France’s streets to support student protesters, armed with a rallying cry that translates to almost nothing.
The phrase “Bismillah, c’est les ténèbres” roughly translates to “In the name of God, it’s the darkness” – a mash-up of the Arabic expression “bismillah,” which French youth colloquially use like “let’s go,” and a gloomy French idiom for a hopeless situation.
The slogan originated in early October when high school students organizing school blockades on Snapchat spotted a suspected infiltrator. A user named “Mamadou” asked to join a private group, messaging: “Hi, in the name of God, it’s the darkness. When’s the blockade, wallah, bro?”
The New York Times reported the message was sent repeatedly under different profiles – including Mamadou and Abdellah – with Algerian flag emojis. Students suspected the sender was a police officer posing as a teenager.
While French authorities have not commented, the French TV program “Quotidien” reported police in Aix-en-Provence used the phrase on Snapchat to pose as students.
Viewing the wording as an absurd caricature of immigrant youth slang, protesters embraced it as evidence of how out of touch and quick to profile the authorities seemed.
The phrase quickly spread to marches across France – from Place de la Bastille in Paris to Toulouse, Lille and Clermont-Ferrand – spawning merchandise and parody videos before jumping to protests in Belgium and Italy.
The student movement began in September over crowded classrooms and teacher shortages, later expanding to protest the high cost of living. Turnout peaked the weekend of Oct. 17 with hundreds of thousands in the streets. On Oct. 13, the Interior Ministry estimated 161,500 demonstrators, while student organizers claimed 480,000.
Youssef el Chazli, a sociologist at Paris 8 University, told Al Jazeera the slogan “reinforces an image of out-of-touch policemen filled with stereotypes” that disproportionately target youths of Arab and African descent. He added that protest creativity “will draw heavily on youths’ subcultures.”
The unrest has also sparked political backlash. France’s far right blamed Muslim youths for the violence, while former President Donald Trump claimed the demonstrations were about “Islam wanting to take over.”
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