The French Are Accusing Trevor Noah of Legitimizing Racist Ideology

From Esquire

Trevor Noah is receiving backlash for a Daily Show segment on Monday, where he said "Africa won the World Cup," because of the number of black players on the French national soccer team. Some have even called Noah's comments "racist," and on Wednesday the French ambassador to the U.S. Gerard Araud wrote a letter to the Daily Show host accusing him of legitimizing "the ideology of whiteness as the only definition of being French."

“Unlike the United States of America, France does not refer to its citizens based on their race, religion or origin,” Araud wrote. "For us, there is no hyphenated identity, the roots are an individual reality. By calling them an African team, it seems that you are denying their Frenchness.”

Noah defended his comments Wednesday night on the Daily Show.

"When I'm saying 'African,' I'm not saying it to exclude them from their French-nessI'm saying it to include them in my African-ness. I'm saying, 'I see you, my French brother of African descent,'" Noah said.

In another behind-the-scenes video, Noah reads the letter from Araud and notes that he will continue to praise the athletes for being African “because I believe they are of Africa.”

“They can be French, because I believe they can both at the same time," Noah said. "And if French people are saying they can't be, then I think they have a problem and not me."

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