Shocking account of the 2016 attack in Nice, all but forgotten in France let alone rest of the world

[HangerLaneGyratorySystem]

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/oct/29/in-deserted-courtroom-grim-details-of-nice-atrocity-go-mostly-unnoticed

Gripping piece of journalism, from the on-going trial - 86 people including 15 children died and 450 injured when a lorry was driven through them (literally). Now I read it, I remember it being on the news but on a world stage of tragedies it just got lost. There are some terrible stories in here and you can feel the journalist's sense of hopelessness.

Just read that. Its heartbreaking.

It's a phenomena I've lived with a long time.

When people talk about the IRA in the UK, where people come from matters.

If you are from NI your story and what you remember is different from those who live in England. All the bombs in NI get forgotten by the English. If you are a Londoner it's typical to speak of Canary Wharf.

When I speak of being caught up in a bombing as a child, people immediately start talking about the Arndale bombing of Manchester, in which no one was killed. They always forget Warrington which was 3 years earlier, killed two children and had a particular significance to the peace process.

Now if you talked about the Manchester bombing it would be the Arianna Grande gig...

When you talk to an American about terrorism they forget the IRA which had widespread support within New York and start talking about 9/11.

So the idea of provincial Nice being forgotten especially since it followed Paris isn't really a new or novel thing.

At the time, people in the uk posted tricolor flags on their Facebook and said trite things about not forgetting.

I think that's the worst for me. You see it all unravelling and hear the platitudes and you know its only a matter of time before they move on and it's only those caught up in events and their fallout who remember and then that fades with the passage of time.

Over and over again.

And that's where the hopelessness and sense of the past repeating and forgotten stories replaying for a new generation's horror when it all kicks off again.

Nice? Remember Bali? Bali? Remember Christchurch? Christchurch? Remember Barcelona?

I read this earlier. Powerful writing. I hadn't forgotten Nice or the other attacks mentioned by PP, tho yes, I get the point that not all things are equal especially re N Ireland; many on the mainland do regard it as a different country. I hadn't appreciated the French attitude to Nice the city and how that has affected attitudes to the attacks there. I don't have anything constructive to add, other than how moved I was by an article that reached far beyond headlines.

I remember it but I hadn't realised the death toll was so high. France certainly has been hit hard by terrorism.

That article is heartbreaking.

His last sentence. I understand that. I have on occasion read something so awful I've almost felt compelled to draw it to the attention of someone else, because I don't want to be the only person to know it. As though maybe by passing it on to some else it will lessen the awfulness.

I also hadn't realised the death toll was so high.

That’s how I felt @StarbucksSmarterSister

I remember reading about this at the time. This is a heartbreaking reminder.

Mixed feelings here

First bc that article is very Parisian (and expat Parisian) Yes Parisians look down on the provinces all of them not just Nice but that doesn't mean all of France has forgotten this attack. Certainly, not those in the South. I have family in another part of France who are following the trial. So I think it's poor taste to present this as a forgotten event just bc some Parisians don't care about it.

Second, I think it's just human nature to move on. People don't want to think about horrible things. Yes there is an unfortunate aspect to that, but it's not solely unfortunate either. I was personally affected by 9/11, living in a city affected by 9/11, and two years later everyone I knew just wanted to be processing their grief, instead our government launched a horrible war in Iraq. Remembering violence doesn't only lead to peace, it can lead to revenge and more violence.

There is a lot of racism and hate crime in France and it's worth thinking about how the far right uses previous terrorist attacks to spur that on.

Very powerful and emotional piece of journalism.

I too had forgotten how many people were murdered during the attack

I have a clearer account of the Paris attacks which were eight months before the Nice attacks and then of course there was the Charlie Hebdo attack the previous year sadly we become desensitised to news.

I remember the Nice attacks - the heartbreaking photo of the little girl under a blanket is seared on my brain. I read that article - devastating. I don’t know what the answer is - we are all affected by these things in different and unique ways.

I live in Nice and was there for the attacks and to say that France has forgotten about it is simply lazy journalism, our city and mayor have been very vocal about remembering the “angels of the promenade”, we have a memorial service every year for them and their families and there are several events throughout the year where they are remembered and celebrated in addition to the fact that the survivors groups have fought very hard to have fair representation at the trial.
As a previous poster explained, Paris and Parisians have a complicated relationship with the provinces but let’s not forget that Paris is just one tiny part of France……..

Also, nobody in the South has forgotten the children, the primary schools in Nice hold a minutes silence each year for the children who died in the attack and a local author has written a book in Niçois and French which was sent to all primary and middle schools to explain what happened in simple language to help children understand the scale of the atrocity.

Sorry if I sound worked up about this but I know several people who were caught up in the attack and don’t want them to think we have forgotten about them.

I live in southern France and it most definitely has not been forgotten. I know two families who lost mothers and children. I haven’t been to a Bastille night since then - it makes me profoundly uneasy.
I read recently about the young girl who survived the Brussels airport bomb( she was 16) and her mental torture was so great that she was granted her request to have assisted suicide. She was 22.

Well I didn't expect someone to so quickly prove my point that remembrance can fuel hatred but there you go

Definitely not forgotten in France. Weird claim.

I don't think it has been forgotten. I live in a place where there was a big terrorist attack forty years ago and every year there are remembrance services. Tbh I wouldn't expect others to remember the date though. Unfortunately there are far too many tragedies in the world.

That wasn't blasted across the news networks 24 hours a day for months on end unlike the poor little boy that drowned whilst trying to criss into Europe by sea with his family for example. They moved his body to the sea shore to make it a more poignant photo.
The Nice girl was swept under the rug, much like Ebber Akkerlund who was killed by another truck attack.
They start on the Let's Put It Behind Us And Give Peace A Chance agenda before the bodies have even cooled down with some things but the Never Ever Forget with others

Hi,

Who is hatred being fulled towards ?

Thanks in advance for your considered and detailed response.

What dreamingbohemian said.

Completely agree with @dreamingbohemian

My cousin lives in Paris with his family, they were in Nice visiting his MIL and had to run for safety, luckily all safe.
Same cousin was at the stade de France in Paris when a suicide bomber tried to enter the stadium.
I live in Manchester, I heard the bomb go off from my home.

these things are never forgotten and are all talked about so like every incident around the world are remembered