Between Neglect and Resistance:
A Testimony from Bellefontaine’s Forgotten Community
We conducted a more in-depth interview with a resident of the Titien block, a building directly connected to the Goya block. He kindly agreed to a phone interview.
Here is the summary
Hello Sir,
Thank you again for taking the time to answer our questions. To better explain who we are, we are architecture students. Our goal is to provide support to neighborhoods affected by repeated building demolitions.
We have already gathered testimonies from your neighbors, indicating that landlords do not repair elevators, neglect lighting, and ignore general maintenance. We are contacting you to find out if you have witnessed these situations or noticed any malfunctions in your own home.
“Vandalism: the young people hanging around the bottom of the towers, and the dealers, they want to break things for the sake of breaking. There’s a lot of money involved, not just with drugs, but also with landlords, and people want to buy social peace. The authorities know the youth in these troubled neighborhoods, and the issue is the drugs. Back in the day, 45 years ago, there were no drugs, and so there were no problems either. (Yamin arrived in Bellefontaine in 1998.) There are occasional events, but they’re isolated. The associations only come because they get subsidies; they’re just filling gaps. People don’t trust them anymore, and there’s been a loss of confidence. Back in the day, there was activism, with active participants in the neighborhood, but now no one, people are tired.”
Yamin is an "older brother" figure and works as a street educator, mainly in sports, to help the neighborhood’s youth. Before, he lived in the countryside, and his father came to France to work on the railway as part of family reunification. Everyone was born in France, thanks to this.
Have you been informed that a demolition would take place nearby, and did you receive compensation for the upcoming work-related disturbances?
“No one told us anything. Not even the manager knows. They can apply pressure; it’s a real tug of war!”
If you had to be relocated because your building was going to be demolished, would you be satisfied with the alternative?
“If they offered me a place in Casere, or in the countryside in Ossonne near Blagnac, or Bordeaux Rouge near the big camp, it’s too far. We’d like to move back to Mirail, but financially, it’s more expensive and worse off. People feel isolated, far from everything, and they need to take several transport options just to reach the center. Here, it’s just 15 minutes away from the center. Life here revolves around the markets—Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, every day! The market is the remaining bit of life here. We cross paths, we chat. Every Wednesday at Bellefontaine, Friday at Bagatelle.”
Do you notice a general state of degradation in your neighborhood?
“Yes, the building, dealers breaking things just to bother the neighbors and landlords. The buildings are good. They say it’s more expensive to renovate than to demolish, but that’s false! Last year, a company rewired all the electricity. If they demolish, it’ll be wasteful; everything has already been redone. The problem is, they want to make us leave. They’ll just shift the issue elsewhere. The homes here are great, 90m² T4, 3 bedrooms, a spacious living room with two balconies. The new housing units, today, are tiny, chicken coops for social housing. My mother was offered a place at Bordeaux Rouge, but it’s way more expensive. She currently pays €525 for 100m², but for a 60m² place, she’d lose 40m²!”
Did you have the opportunity to give your opinion on these demolition projects or the future of the neighborhood?
“Not at all. Later, they’ll say we should’ve gone to the town hall for information. They’ll tell us to come, but no one does. You have to seek them out.”
Are there any nuisances (noise, dirt, insecurity) that have worsened recently?
“Yessss!” (he repeats throughout the interview)
Have you contacted the landlords for repairs or requests, and how did they respond?
“Of course! My mother called Toulouse Habitat yesterday. The lock wasn’t working. She has to force it to turn, and she’s not young anymore. They sent a manager who just put some oil on it, but nothing more. It’s all quick fixes, patched up in a rush.”
How do you deal with the uncertainty related to the demolitions in your daily life?
“My philosophy is to live day by day. As for how others handle it, I don’t know. If I’m not here tomorrow, then I’m not here tomorrow! People don’t know what’s coming. My mother often wonders, but I don’t know. Normally, the landlords are supposed to inform us!”
Do you feel supported by the town hall, associations, or landlords?
“No one!”
How are your relations with your neighbors? Can you count on them?
“Yes, they’re fine. For asking for salt or pepper, no problems. I must admit the Syrian neighbors upstairs make too much noise; it’s a difference in upbringing. Their kids stay up late. My mother sent letters to Habitat Toulouse Métropole, but nothing has changed.”
What would you like to improve in the building? Is there anything missing for your needs?
“Repainting the place because, as it stands, it’s not looking good. The color of the building, it’s gray. We need colors, it’s tiring, dreary. We need to replace the tiles, make it brighter, it looks dull from outside, it’s not welcoming. There was an experimental project nearby, which was not bad, a messenger-like project. But because of the drug dealing, things get vandalized. The 13-14 year-olds break things. It used to be worse, but the big dealers asked for more discretion. They don’t want the police around. There’s a lot of money at stake—around 40,000-80,000 euros a day in France, even more on weekends. (He sees it from his balcony, living above a drug point and watching people pass daily.) France is hooked on drugs. There’s a malaise, everyone’s on drugs. That’s the real problem. I don’t talk to the dealers anymore; you can get retaliated against. The residents are afraid, so we all keep to ourselves. Many people from suburban neighborhoods come to buy drugs here—doctors, teachers, nurses. They come to these neighborhoods. The issue is, there’s a large demand. Saint-Simon’s surrounding neighborhoods come here to stock up. The police come too because there’s a lot of money involved. Syrians in the neighborhood, they don’t speak the language. It’s not the same Arabic as the Tunisians or Moroccans. They find it hard to communicate with others, let alone with the landlords. The issue is drugs. Instead of demolishing, there’s a problem that’s getting worse. There’s a social malaise that didn’t exist before in France.”