Fadela Amara - Honorary Degree for French civil rights campaigner

UK Honour for French civil rights campaigner FADELA Amara, president and founder of the movement 'Ni Putes Ni Soumises' (Neither Whores Nor Submissive) has been honoured in the UK with an honorary degree from Manchester Metropolitan University.

Ms Amara, whose group campaigns for female emancipation, gender equality and for the cessation of violence against women in the French banlieues (inner cities), received the title Doctor of Letters Honoris Causa at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester on Tuesday, July 11.

Born to Algerian parents in Clermont Ferrand, Fadela Amara has engaged since the age of 14 in republican, civil and human rights associations to fight racism, anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination.

In 2002 she set up the 'Assembly of Girls from the Ghetto Areas' at the Sorbonne University to protest about violence, insecurity and oppressive traditions in immigrant communities and also organised a series of marches against deaths of young women at the hands of their families and communities culminating in a 30,000 strong march in 2003 under the banner 'Ni Putes ni Soumises' (NPNS).

In August 2004, she was appointed a member of France's Consultative Committee for Human Rights and in 2005 became a member of the High Authority for the Fight Against Discrimination by French President, Jacques Chirac.

Awarded numerous national and international honours for human rights, Fadela receives her MMU degree "in recognition of her outstanding work, particularly in the ghettos, to end racism and violence against young women and children and to restore their connection with their communities".

During her time in Manchester, Fadela met local Muslim and women's rights groups through their connections with MMU's Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education, a national centre of youth and community work, community psychology and work in the field of gender and race equality.

Helen Colley, senior research fellow at MMU, said: "The outstanding contribution of Fadela Amara is that the NPNS is rooted among the young people - male and female, black and white - of the ghettos themselves.

"This movement engenders practical youth and community work, social work, informal and formal education, health and psychological care while at the same time drawing together research and engaging politicians and policy-makers to create change.

"In this respect Fadela's work resonates with the entire Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education, and epitomizes the caring and enabling mission of our Faculty as well as the multicultural values espoused by the Faculty."