Our reporters caught up with Djamel, Farid, Marilaure and Toumi, some of the protagonists of the 1983 march. Heroes to a whole generation of immigrants and second-generation immigrants in France, they bring us an uncompromising view of their initiative that shook up French society, but also on what has happened since.
Indeed, these "marchers" often take a bitter view of the shortcomings, failures and unfulfilled promises of French politicians, and of the isolation that the inhabitants of working-class neighbourhoods still face too often.
Forty years on, the legacy of the March for Equality and Against Racism resonates more than ever in a fractured French society where so little has changed.
English translation: Nicholas Rushworth and Shirli Sitbon Read more French suburbs: Fresh protests against police violence rooted in decades of harassment, inequality Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning Take international news everywhere with you!