With the help of time and worldwide support, Paris has slowly, but surely, been returning to normal in the weeks since the terrible events of November 13 – or at least, as normal as things can be given what has happened. France is still under a nationwide state of emergency, but things seem to have more or less stabilized. That doesn’t mean that everything is as it was before, though. While I can’t speak for all Parisians and French people, I know that for me and my friends, the attacks have led to an effective split of life in France “Before” and “After” November 13, 2015.
Although Paris had already been the target of another terrorist attack earlier this year, when I arrived in the French capital in August this year, I didn’t feel at all in danger. At that time, my largest concern in terms of crime was the possibility of being pickpocketed, which I have fortunately managed to avoid thus far. As a country, France had implemented higher levels of security, called the Vigipirate plan, after the Charlie Hebdo shooting. France and Paris felt as safe as Montreal.
In the “After,” that sense of safety and security has been shattered for many French and Parisian residents. Once they received news of the attacks, McGill’s international education offices emailed me asking me to let them know of my safety and not to hesitate if I was unable to complete my semester “in light of the exceptional circumstances.” When I got that email, I’ll admit that I was tempted to take the chance to drop everything and flee back to North America, where I might feel safer. I was still reeling from the initial shock of learning about what had occurred. After a few days, I was slowly able to process it all and decided to finish out the semester as planned. However, when classes continued the next week, it became apparent that a large number of Sciences Po’s exchange students had taken up the offers from their home universities and had left to go back home.
Rue Saint-Guillaume as Sciences Po’s main building was evacuated on Monday, Nov. 16, 2015.
That week, there were a total of three building evacuations at the Paris campus of Sciences Po. After the attacks, everyone was clearly and understandably nervous, to put it lightly. The evacuations were all false alarms in the end, but it just goes to show how much the attacks have affected us mentally and emotionally. Immediately after the attacks, Sciences Po began enforcing security checks at all entrances of the campus buildings. This essentially means that to get into any of the buildings, you have to present your Sciences Po student ID card and open any large bags for a quick security check. In the streets of Paris, members of the gendarmerie, armed with large rifles, patrol major metro stations and busy parts of town. Like the rest of France, Paris is on high alert for the next three months. For safety reasons, Lyon’s annual Fête des Lumières has been cancelled.
The day after the attacks, my parents called and asked me if I wanted (read: strongly encouraged me) to cancel all of the trips that I had planned for the rest of the semester. I told them no, because I honestly don’t feel like my safety level would change whether I stayed in Paris or travelled as planned. Despite being worried, my parents have respected my decision, and I’ve continued my travels, albeit a bit more warily than before.
The Eiffel Tower illuminated at night.
Still, the way I see it, we can’t stop living. Of course, we must take the necessary precautions now to avoid any sort of danger, but allowing the fear of the possibility of danger to prevent you from doing something is exactly what the perpetrators of the attacks wanted, and I refuse to give them that satisfaction. We all continue to mourn the heartbreaking losses that resulted from these horrendous acts, but we won’t let these terrible people control our lives this way. Only a few evenings ago, the lights of the Eiffel Tower returned to their usual colours after several nights of being illuminated in red, white, and blue in honour of the November 13 victims. While this doesn’t mean that we’ve forgotten or will forget the victims of the attacks, it does mean that we’re moving forward.
Photos are the author’s own.