NEW ORLEANS (press release) – From March 21 to April 30, the Consulate General of France in Louisiana will showcase the diversity of the French-Speaking community of Louisiana in a photo exhibition displayed on the fence of the French Residence on Prytania St. to celebrate Francophonie Month.
250,000 people claim a francophone heritage in Louisiana. Behind this number, an incredible diversity of histories, origins, and linguistic practices emerges. Louisiana: a mosaic of peoples and heritages that intermingle to create a complex and unique identity.
Who are they?
Speakers of French and Louisiana Creole, members of the Creole, Cajun and Indigenous communities, as well as Francophones born in other countries and learners of French.
If this francophonie is often embodied in public figures, activists and authors known internationally, we have chosen to highlight members of the community who keep the French language alive in their daily practices – teachers, merchants, students, artists, veterans or civil servants who are “the faces of francophonie”.
French, a heritage language, is the marker of an identity and a culture in Louisiana that was jeopardized in a painful past. Today, the community’s desire to assert itself transcends generations. The motto “Lâche pas” (Don’t give up) reminds us of this incredible desire to continue to move forward!
