Tirailleurs: The black troops who helped liberate Europe | DW News

Key Concepts

• Tirailleurs: A French term for riflemen, specifically referring to colonial infantry soldiers from Africa who fought for France.
• Thiaroye Massacre: A 1944 event where French colonial troops killed hundreds of African soldiers who were demanding promised wages.
• Historical Erasure: The systematic omission of the contributions of non-European soldiers from the official narrative of World War I and World War II.
• Decolonial Curation: The practice of using art and exhibitions to challenge colonial narratives and restore the visibility of marginalized historical figures.
• Entangled Histories: The concept that the histories of Europe and its former colonies are inextricably linked through shared conflict, labor, and migration.

1. The Role of African Soldiers in European Conflicts

The exhibition Trials and Tribulations: From Cannon Fodder to Avant-Garde at the House of World Cultures in Berlin highlights the vital, yet largely ignored, role of African soldiers in European wars.

• Historical Scope: The recruitment of tirailleurs began in 1857. These soldiers were instrumental in both World War I and World War II.
• "Cannon Fodder": Many soldiers were sent to the front lines with little to no training, often learning to use weapons on the battlefield.
• Liberation of Europe: African battalions were central to the liberation of Paris and the broader defeat of Nazi Germany. Despite this, they were often "whitewashed" out of victory imagery in 1944 to ensure the public perception of a "white" liberation.

2. The Thiaroye Massacre (December 1, 1944)

A focal point of the exhibition is the tragedy at Thiaroye, a suburb of Dakar, Senegal.

• The Incident: After returning from German prisoner-of-war camps, thousands of African soldiers mutinied, demanding the wages they were owed by the French colonial government.
• Casualties: While official French records at the time claimed only 35 deaths, recent research indicates that over 500 soldiers were massacred by French colonial troops.
• Artistic Commemoration: Artist Binta Dia created an installation featuring a mass of soil, flowers, and a tirailleur hat, accompanied by a sonic "roll call" that names the victims to honor their memory.

3. Methodologies of Remembrance and Curation

Dr. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, the curator, emphasizes that the exhibition serves as a political and restorative act.

• Research-Based Art: Many artists in the exhibition discovered their own family connections to the tirailleurs during their research, turning personal family silences into public discourse.
• Connecting Past and Present: The exhibition draws a direct line between the tirailleurs of the 1940s and the contemporary treatment of migrants in Europe. Artist Kadia’s work projects images of historical soldiers alongside footage of modern-day deportations, highlighting that many migrants are the descendants of those who fought for European freedom.
• Political Intent: The exhibition aims to challenge the French government and other former colonial powers to acknowledge these historical wrongs, provide reparations, and foster new, equitable bilateral relations.

4. Key Arguments and Perspectives

• The "Problem vs. Solution" Narrative: The Rwandan Ambassador to Germany noted that Africans are frequently framed as "problems" in European discourse, whereas the history of the tirailleurs proves they were essential "solutions" to the democratization and liberation of Europe.
• The Necessity of Reckoning: Cameroonian artist Barthélémy Toguo argues that global progress requires acknowledging past atrocities, compensating victims, and building solidarity based on truth.
• The "Multicultural" Nature of War: Citing historian David Olusoga, the exhibition asserts that World War I was the most multicultural event on European soil, involving soldiers from Africa, India, Vietnam, and the Americas.

5. Notable Quotes

• Barthélémy Toguo: "Acknowledging past wrongs, compensating the victims and building new bilateral relations, genuine exchanges of solidarity across the world. I believe we must start again on that kind of foundation."
• Dr. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung: "Every cultural gesture is a political one... knowledge is power and is at the base at the core of any political activity."

Synthesis and Conclusion

The exhibition Trials and Tribulations serves as a critical intervention in the collective memory of Europe. By documenting the contributions of African soldiers—from their role as "cannon fodder" to their participation in the liberation of Europe—the show exposes the hypocrisy of colonial powers that utilized African lives for freedom while denying them basic rights and historical recognition. The core takeaway is that European history cannot be accurately told without acknowledging its entanglement with the African continent. The exhibition advocates for a shift in perspective: moving from the erasure of these soldiers to a formal reckoning that includes the naming of the dead, the honoring of their service, and the pursuit of reparations for their descendants.