Leila Slimani: Racism in France Becoming More Open and Public

Slimani has spoken about the reasons for her departure from France, which she says are not related to racism. "We moved because I wanted my children (12 and 6 years old) to have an environment like the one I loved as a child: the sea, the good weather, a small town where you can easily find your friends again...," the Moroccan confides to Sport.es, noting a more "open" racism in France today. "I don’t know if there are more or fewer racists today, but the reality is that they are no longer afraid to admit it and to demonstrate it publicly," she said.

Speaking of racism, the writer "avoids putting people in little boxes." "I come from so many places... because I have read and learned from so many cultures... An Algerian is very different from a Moroccan and a Moroccan from Rabat can be completely different from another from Marrakech, who can look much more like a Spaniard than any Muslim. It’s not black and white; as a writer, I’m interested in complexity," she elaborates.

The Moroccan acknowledges that she attaches more importance to the story than to the style in her works. "Since I don’t have the extraordinary gift or style of a Joyce or a Proust, I tend to focus more on the story I’m going to tell... The new generations are more focused on the narrative," explains the one who considers herself a writer with multiple identities. "I am a Francophone, French, Moroccan, female, African, Mediterranean, Maghrebi writer..."

The author of "The Country of Others," the first title in the trilogy on colonization and its origins, has just published in Spain "Miradnos bailar" (Watch Us Dance), the second novel in the trilogy. She says she feels like a "foreigner" all the time. "I care less and less about where I live. We have a lot of friends in Lisbon and my husband loves it, but I don’t care: I live locked up in my office."