France sees itself as blind to race. After a teen is killed by police, how does one discuss racism?

NANTERRE, France — The race of the police officer who fatally shot a French teenager during a traffic stop last week hasn’t been disclosed, and there’s no reason why it would be. The Paris police chief, Laurent Nunez, said Sunday he was shocked by the U.N. human rights office’s use of the term “racism” in its criticism of French law enforcement. “They say we are all French … so for them, it’s racist to do something like that,” said Iman Essaifi, a 25-year-old resident of Nanterre, the Paris suburb where the teen, Nahel Merzouk, was killed. Nanterre’s mayor, Patrick Jarry, spoke on Monday of the suburb “in all its diversity.” A statement last week by a large police union, the Alliance Police Nationale, described the rioters as “vermin.” Of course there’s racism in France, some people said. Dozens of organizations and political parties are calling for “citizens’ marches” on Saturday across France to call for police reforms, saying that long-running tensions between officers and the people are part of a history of “systematic racism that runs through society at large.” Police officers reject accusations that some single out people because of their color.