User:Timeousbeastie/Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoire

The Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoire (CVUH) is an association of historians, founded in France in 2006 by academics Gérard Noiriel, Michèle Riot-Sarcey and Nicolas Offenstadt in order to monitor the public use of history for memorial purposes, particularly by politicians.

Its activities include the publication of articles or participation in broadcasts when memory-related controversies arise, the organisation of study days and workshops, the coordination of a series published by éditions Agone and a website monitoring issues of history and memory.

Created in the wake of the Olivier Grenouilleau affair and in opposition to the law of 23 February 2005 recognising the "positive role of the French overseas presence, particularly in North Africa", the association appeared publicly on 17 June 2005 with the publication of its manifesto. Unlike the Liberté pour l'histoire movement, the CVUH does not oppose the memorial laws. Many of the current and former members of its board have been or are activists on the left or the extreme left, which has led to accusations of partiality.

Présentation
The Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoire was founded in June 2005, at the time of the debate "on the positive effects of colonisation" centred on the law on the recognition of the Nation and national contribution in favour of repatriated French citizens.

According to historian Sébastien Ledoux, the CVUH brings together, in addition to secondary school teachers, "historians working on research topics that are marginalised in the academic field (gender, immigration, slavery, colonisation).

Presidents

 * 2005-2009: Gérard Noiriel ;
 * 2009-2010: Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch ;
 * 2010-2011?: Laurence De Cock;
 * 2011-2015: Laurent Colantonio ;
 * 2017-: Natacha Coquery.

Public positions
The refusal to condemn memorial laws that do not directly regulate the work of historians has led the CVUH to regularly oppose Liberté pour l'histoire, another historian's movement presided over by René Rémond and then Pierre Nora, which was created at the end of 2005 following a complaint lodged by an overseas collective against Olivier Pétré-Grenouilleau and calls for the abolition of all memorial laws. In 2008, the CVUH criticised the book published by CNRS Éditions Liberté pour l'histoire (directed by Pierre Nora and Françoise Chandernagor) and the "Blois Appeal" («Appel de Blois») distributed by this movement on the occasion of the Rendez-vous de l'Histoire.

Thinking of itself as a intellectual collective, the committee does not deny the legitimacy per se of "memorial laws" which may appear as declarations of a society on itself, and which, in this sense, are in keeping with the logic of a functioning democracy. It opposes Liberté pour l'histoire, another historian's movement born in the same context in 2005 and which rejects the memorial laws as a whole.

According to political scientist Johann Michel, the CVUH, by not opposing memorial laws outright, shows "a preference for the victimist and anti-colonialist memory regime (and thus a desire to deconstruct the myth or national story), an antipathy for "right-wing" memorial laws and, conversely, a sympathy for "left-wing" memorial laws" (« une préférence pour le régime mémoriel victimaire et anticolonialiste (et donc une volonté de déconstruction du mythe ou du roman national), une antipathie pour les lois mémorielles de « droite » et, réciproquement, une sympathie pour les lois mémorielles de « gauche » »).

Publishing
The CVUH compiled the collection "Passé & présent" published by Agone. These works follow the stated objective of the CVUH: "to alert citizens to the possible misuse of historical research and to reflect on its place and function in our society. As half of the royalties from the collection go to the CVUH, "Past and Present" plays an important role in the financing of the association. S e ven titles were published between 2007-2017:


 * À quoi sert « l’identité nationale », by Gérard Noiriel, October 2007 ISBN 9782748900804.
 * Comment Nicolas Sarkozy écrit l’histoire de France, directed by Laurence De Cock, Fanny Madeline, Nicolas Offenstadt and Sophie Wahnich, April 2008 ISBN 9782748900934.
 * Enjeux politiques de l’histoire coloniale, by Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch, May 2009 ISBN 9782748901054.
 * La Fabrique scolaire de l’histoire : Illusions et désillusions du roman national, directed by Laurence De Cock and Emmanuelle Picard, September 2009 ISBN 9782748901061.
 * Pour quoi faire la Révolution, by Jean-Luc Chappey, Bernard Gainot, Guillaume Mazeau, Frédéric Régent and Pierre Serna, March 2012 ISBN 9782748901610.
 * Conversation sur la naissance des inégalités, by Christophe Darmangeat, February 2013 ISBN 9782748901818.
 * La Fabrique scolaire de l’histoire II, dirigé by Laurence De Cock, August 2017 ISBN 9782748903355.