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| ‘Hang the Whites,’ French Rapper Declares. Now He May Face Jail. | ‘Hang the Whites,’ French Rapper Declares. Now He May Face Jail. |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| PARIS — A little-known French rapper’s violent music video that intones “hang the whites” amid calls for killing “the white babies” has created a small uproar in France, with politicians rushing to condemn it, anti-racism groups denouncing it and the Paris prosecutor’s office opening an investigation. | PARIS — A little-known French rapper’s violent music video that intones “hang the whites” amid calls for killing “the white babies” has created a small uproar in France, with politicians rushing to condemn it, anti-racism groups denouncing it and the Paris prosecutor’s office opening an investigation. |
| The video depicts a hitherto obscure rapper from the Paris suburb of Noisy-le-Grand, Nick Conrad, kidnapping a white man, stuffing him into the trunk of a car, shoving a pistol into his mouth and shooting him. Then it shows the man’s hanged body. All the while the rapper repeats “hang the whites.” | The video depicts a hitherto obscure rapper from the Paris suburb of Noisy-le-Grand, Nick Conrad, kidnapping a white man, stuffing him into the trunk of a car, shoving a pistol into his mouth and shooting him. Then it shows the man’s hanged body. All the while the rapper repeats “hang the whites.” |
| YouTube had pulled the video by Wednesday but copies of it were still viewable on Thursday. | YouTube had pulled the video by Wednesday but copies of it were still viewable on Thursday. |
| “I go into the nurseries, I kill the white babies, catch them quick and hang their parents, pull them apart to pass the time, amuse the black children off all ages, little and big,” the rapper says. | “I go into the nurseries, I kill the white babies, catch them quick and hang their parents, pull them apart to pass the time, amuse the black children off all ages, little and big,” the rapper says. |
| Few had heard of Mr. Conrad or of his video before French far-right websites flagged it and began distributing it Wednesday, according to a reconstruction of events by Le Monde. Within hours, the video had passed from France’s extreme right to its mainstream right, with politicians competing with one another to express indignation. | Few had heard of Mr. Conrad or of his video before French far-right websites flagged it and began distributing it Wednesday, according to a reconstruction of events by Le Monde. Within hours, the video had passed from France’s extreme right to its mainstream right, with politicians competing with one another to express indignation. |
| Later in the day, Interior Minister Gérard Collomb chimed in. “Words like this are totally unacceptable,” he said. “Rappers have young listeners and so, little by little, it marks them. And that’s how you wound up with the worst perversions in our society.” | Later in the day, Interior Minister Gérard Collomb chimed in. “Words like this are totally unacceptable,” he said. “Rappers have young listeners and so, little by little, it marks them. And that’s how you wound up with the worst perversions in our society.” |
| Mr. Conrad, for his part, appears to have achieved his objective — to emerge from total obscurity, even if he may now be facing serious judicial consequences. | Mr. Conrad, for his part, appears to have achieved his objective — to emerge from total obscurity, even if he may now be facing serious judicial consequences. |
| An investigation into “public incitement to the commission of a crime or offense” was opened by the public prosecutor’s office, and on Thursday afternoon, right-leaning media were still pushing the story. Violent speech has fewer protections in France than in the United States, and prosecutions are not uncommon. | An investigation into “public incitement to the commission of a crime or offense” was opened by the public prosecutor’s office, and on Thursday afternoon, right-leaning media were still pushing the story. Violent speech has fewer protections in France than in the United States, and prosecutions are not uncommon. |
| France is not used to the extreme racial hatred on display in the video. And it is certainly not accustomed to expressions of anti-white hatred, a “marginal phenomenon,” according to Frédéric Potier, the country’s official in charge of fighting racism. | France is not used to the extreme racial hatred on display in the video. And it is certainly not accustomed to expressions of anti-white hatred, a “marginal phenomenon,” according to Frédéric Potier, the country’s official in charge of fighting racism. |
| “The words are extremely violent, and so are the images,” Mr. Potier said of Mr. Conrad’s video. | “The words are extremely violent, and so are the images,” Mr. Potier said of Mr. Conrad’s video. |
| He contacted judicial officials soon after becoming aware of it. “We had a choice: We could either ignore it, or react,” he said, noting that the authorities are often pilloried by the far right for “only protecting minorities.” | He contacted judicial officials soon after becoming aware of it. “We had a choice: We could either ignore it, or react,” he said, noting that the authorities are often pilloried by the far right for “only protecting minorities.” |
| “The immense majority of those who saw it took it as an expression of hatred,” Mr. Potier said. | “The immense majority of those who saw it took it as an expression of hatred,” Mr. Potier said. |
| Mr. Conrad, in several interviews in French media, insisted otherwise. | Mr. Conrad, in several interviews in French media, insisted otherwise. |
| “It’s a mirror, a response to the injustices inflicted on my community since slavery,” he told one newspaper, Le Parisien. “I was inspired by my personal experience and what I observe every day, as an artist. My feeling is that the black man always has to make more of an effort to integrate himself and fit into the mold.” | “It’s a mirror, a response to the injustices inflicted on my community since slavery,” he told one newspaper, Le Parisien. “I was inspired by my personal experience and what I observe every day, as an artist. My feeling is that the black man always has to make more of an effort to integrate himself and fit into the mold.” |
| Mr. Conrad could face up to five years in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros, about $52,000, if convicted. |