Widely reported in the media, it was the first incident of large scale public unrest in a French suburb, and marked the first time cars were burned as a protest in France.
[1][2][3][4][5] In response, the idea of a nonviolent march emerged in order to attempt to reduce tensions between the police and the youth of Les Minguettes.
Priest Christian Delorme (called Minguettes’ priest, in French: Curé des Minguettes) and pastor Jean Costil, organised an extended, non-violent march, inspired by Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.'s demonstrations calling for the end of segregation in the United States and those of Mahatma Gandhi for Indian independence from the United Kingdom.
Prime Minister Pierre Mauroy also declared that the strikers from Renault "are agitated by religious and political group which behave according to criteria that have nothing to do with the French social reality".
The Franco-Algerian sociologist Abdelmalek Sayad wrote that "we underestimate how much immigrants workers suffered from the tense atmosphere in work and which painfully affected them".
Mitterrand promised a residence and working permit valid for 10 years, a law against racist crimes and a project concerning voting right for foreigners for local elections.
Toumi Djaïdja complained of the hijacking, arguing that their movement was aimed to unite all the French regardless of their origins, whereas "SOS Racisme divided the country in two fighting parts: anti-racists and racists".
The film was directed by the Belgian Nabil Ben Yadir, and stars Oliver Gourmet in the role of the priest Christian Delorme, Tewfik Jallab in the role of Toumi Djaïdja, and also Lubna Azabal, Jamel Debbouze, Charlotte Le Bon, Nader Boussandel, Philippe Nahon, Hafsia Herzi, Vincent Rottiers, M’Barek Belkouk and Frédéric Souterelle.