Editing Frantz Fanon (section)

==Biography==
=== Early life ===
Frantz Omar Fanon was born on 20 July 1925 in [[Fort-de-France]], [[Martinique]], which was then part of the [[French colonial empire]]. His father, Félix Casimir Fanon, worked as a [[customs officer]], while Fanon's mother, Eléanore Médélice, who was of [[Afro-Caribbean people|Afro-Caribbean]] and [[Alsace|Alsatian]] descent, was a shopkeeper.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vfwJCAAAQBAJ |title=What Fanon Said: A Philosophical Introduction to His Life and Thought |last1=Gordon |first1=Lewis R. |last2=Cornell |first2=Drucilla |date=1 January 2015 |publisher=Fordham University Press |isbn=9780823266081 |page=26 |language=en}}</ref> Fanon was the third of four sons in a family of eight children. Two of his siblings died young, including Fanon's sister Gabrielle, with whom he was very close. As they were [[middle class]], his family could afford to send Fanon to the [[Lycée Victor Schœlcher]], the most prestigious [[secondary school]] in Martinique, where Fanon came to admire one of his teachers, [[Aimé Césaire]].<ref name=EhlenBiog>Patrick Ehlen, ''Frantz Fanon: A Spiritual Biography'' (2001), New York: Crossroad 8th Avenue.</ref>

=== World War II ===
After the [[Battle of France]] resulted in the [[French Third Republic]] capitulating to [[Nazi Germany]] in July 1940, Martinique came under the control of [[French Navy]] elements led by Admiral [[Georges Robert (admiral)|Georges Robert]] who were loyal to the collaborationist [[Vichy France|Vichy regime]]. The disruption of imports from [[Metropolitan France]] led to major shortages on the island, which were exacerbated by an American naval [[blockade]] imposed on Martinique in April 1943. Robert's authoritarian regime repressed local [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] sympathizers, hundreds of whom escaped to nearby [[Caribbean]] islands. Fanon later described the Vichy regime in Martinique as taking off their masks and behaving like "authentic racists".<ref>David Macey, [http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/history_workshop_journal/v058/58.1macey.html "Frantz Fanon, or the Difficulty of Being Martinican"], ''History Workshop Journal'', Project Muse. Retrieved 27 August 2010.</ref> In January 1943, he fled Martinique during the wedding of one of his brothers and travelled to the [[British Empire|British colony]] of [[Dominica]] in order to link up with other Allied sympathizers.<ref name=zellig>{{cite book |last1=Zeilig |first1=Leo |title=Frantz Fanon: A Political Biography |date=2021 |publisher=Bloomsbury |location=London |isbn=9780755638239 |edition=First |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PyUhEAAAQBAJ}}</ref>{{rp|24}} 

Robert's regime was overthrown by a local uprising in June of that year, which Fanon would later acclaim as "the birth of the [Martinican] [[proletariat]]" as a revolutionary force. After the uprising, Fanon "enthusiastically" returned to Martinique, where [[Free France|Free French]] leader [[Charles de Gaulle]] had appointed {{ill|Henri Tourtet|fr}} as the colony's new governor. Tourtet subsequently raised the [[5th Antillean Marching Battalion]] to serve in [[French Liberation Army|Free French Forces]] (FFL), and Fanon soon joined the unit in Fort-de-France.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Macey |first1=David |title=Frantz Fanon 1925-1961 |journal=History of Psychiatry |date=December 1996 |volume=7 |issue=28 |pages=489–497 |doi=10.1177/0957154X9600702802 |pmid=11618750 |citeseerx=10.1.1.858.188 |s2cid=45834503 }}</ref><ref>Nicholls, Tracey. ''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.'' http://www.iep.utm.edu/fanon/#H1</ref> He underwent basic training before boarding a [[troopship]] bound for [[Casablanca]], [[French protectorate in Morocco|Morocco]] in March 1944. After Fanon arrived in Morocco, he was shocked to discover the extent of [[racial discrimination]] in the FFL. He was subsequently transferred to a Free French military base in [[Béjaïa]], [[French Algeria|Algeria]], where Fanon witnessed firsthand the [[antisemitism]] and [[Islamophobia]] of the ''[[pieds-noirs]]'', many of whom had supported racist laws promulgated by the Vichy regime.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Algerian Revolution Changed the World for the Better |url=https://jacobin.com/2021/04/algerian-revolution-france-colonialism |access-date=2024-08-18 |website=jacobin.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

In August 1944, he departed on another troopship from [[Oran]] to France as part of [[Operation Dragoon]], the Allied invasion of German-occupied [[Provence]]. After the US [[VI Corps (United States)|VI Corps]] secured a [[beachhead]], Fanon's unit came ashore at [[Saint-Tropez]] and advanced inland. He participated in several engagements near [[Montbéliard]], [[Doubs]] and was seriously wounded by shrapnel, which resulted in him being hospitalized for two months. Fanon was awarded a ''[[Croix de Guerre 1939–1945|Croix de Guerre]]'' by Colonel [[Raoul Salan]] for his actions in battle, and in early 1945 rejoined his unit and fought in the [[Battle of Alsace]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Macey|first=David|date=December 1996|title=Frantz Fanon 1925-1961|url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0957154X9600702802|journal=History of Psychiatry|language=en|volume=7|issue=28|page=490|doi=10.1177/0957154X9600702802|pmid=11618750|s2cid=45834503|issn=0957-154X}}</ref> After German forces had been pushed out of France and Allied troops crossed the [[Rhine]] into Germany, Fanon and his fellow black troops were removed from their formations and sent southwards to [[Toulon]] as part of de Gaulle's policy of removing non-white soldiers from the French army.<ref name=MaceyBiog /> He was subsequently transferred to [[Normandy]] to await [[repatriation]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fanon |first=Frantz |date=14 November 2011 |title=Franz Fanon, Writer born |url=https://aaregistry.org/story/franz-fanon-writer-born/ |access-date=15 May 2022 |website=African American Registry |language=en}}</ref>

Although Fanon had been initially eager to participate in the Allied war effort, the racism he witnessed during the war disillusioned him. Fanon wrote to his brother Joby from Europe that "I've been deceived, and I am paying for my mistakes... I'm sick of it all."<ref name=":0" /> In the fall of 1945, a newly-discharged Fanon returned to Martinique, where he focused on completing his secondary education. Césaire, by now a friend and mentor of his, ran on the [[French Communist Party]] ticket as a delegate from Martinique to the first [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]] of the [[French Fourth Republic]], and Fanon worked for his campaign. Staying in Martinique long enough to complete his ''[[baccalauréat]]'', Fanon proceeded to return to France, where he intended to study medicine and psychiatry.{{fact|date=July 2024}}

===France===
Fanon was educated at the [[University of Lyon]], where he also studied literature, drama and philosophy, sometimes attending [[Merleau-Ponty]]'s lectures. During this period, he wrote three plays, of which two survive.<ref>Fanon, Frantz (2015). [http://www.editionsladecouverte.fr/catalogue/index-_crits_sur_l_alienation_et_la_liberte-9782707188717.html ''Écrits sur l'aliénation et la liberté''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170113140322/http://www.editionsladecouverte.fr/catalogue/index-_crits_sur_l_alienation_et_la_liberte-9782707188717.html |date=13 January 2017 }}. Éditions La Découverte, Paris. {{ISBN|978-2-7071-8871-7}}</ref> After qualifying as a [[psychiatrist]] in 1951, Fanon did a residency in psychiatry at [[Saint-Alban-sur-Limagnole]] under the radical [[Catalan people|Catalan]] psychiatrist [[François Tosquelles]], who invigorated Fanon's thinking by emphasizing the role of culture in psychopathology.

In 1948, Fanon started a relationship with Michèle Weyer, a medical student, who soon became pregnant. He left her for an 18-year-old high school student, Josie, whom he married in 1952. At the urging of his friends, he later recognized his daughter, [[Mireille Fanon Mendès-France|Mireille]], although he did not have contact with her.<ref>Zeilig, L. (2016) ''Frantz Fanon, Militant Philosopher of Third World Liberation.'' I.B.Tauris & Co. Ltd. p 31</ref>

In France, while completing his residency, Fanon wrote and published his first book, ''[[Black Skin, White Masks]]'' (1952), an analysis of the negative psychological effects of [[Colonialism|colonial]] subjugation upon black people. Originally, the manuscript was the [[doctoral dissertation]], submitted at Lyon, entitled ''Essay on the Disalienation of the Black'', which was a response to the racism that Fanon experienced while studying psychiatry and medicine at the University in Lyon; the rejection of the dissertation prompted Fanon to publish it as a book. In 1951, for his [[doctor of medicine]] degree, he submitted another dissertation of narrower scope and a different subject (''Altérations mentales, modifications caractérielles, troubles psychiques et déficit intellectuel dans l'hérédo-dégénération spino-cérébelleuse : à propos d'un cas de maladie de Friedreich avec délire de possession'' – ''Mental alterations, character modifications, psychic disorders, and intellectual deficit in hereditary spinocerebellar degeneration: A case of Friedreich's disease with delusions of possession''). [[Left-wing]] philosopher [[Francis Jeanson]], leader of the pro-Algerian independence [[Jeanson network]], read Fanon's manuscript and, as a senior book editor at [[Éditions du Seuil]] in Paris, gave the book its new title and wrote its epilogue.<ref name=ACherki>{{cite book |last=Cherki|first=Alice|title=Frantz Fanon: A Portrait|url=https://archive.org/details/frantzfanonportr00cher|url-access=registration|year=2006|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0-8014-7308-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/frantzfanonportr00cher/page/24 24]}}</ref>

After receiving Fanon's manuscript at Seuil, Jeanson invited him to an editorial meeting. Amid Jeanson's praise of the book, Fanon exclaimed: "Not bad for a nigger, is it?" Insulted, Jeanson dismissed Fanon from his office. Later, Jeanson learned that his response had earned him the writer's lifelong respect, and Fanon acceded to Jeanson's suggestion that the book be entitled ''Black Skin, White Masks''.<ref name=ACherki/>

In the book, Fanon described the unfair treatment of black people in France and how they were disapproved of by [[white people]]. Frantz argued that racism and dehumanization directed toward black people caused feelings of inferiority among black people. This dehumanization prevented black people from fully assimilating into white society and, further, into full personhood. This caused psychological strife among black people, as even if they spoke French, obtained an education, and followed social customs associated with white people, they would still never be regarded as French, or a Man; instead, black people are defined as "Black Man" rather than "Man". (See further discussion of ''Black Skin, White Masks'' under Work, below.)

===Algeria===
After his residency, Fanon practised psychiatry at [[Pontorson]], near [[Mont Saint-Michel]], for another year and then (from 1953) in [[Algeria]]. He was ''chef de service'' at the [[Blida|Blida-Joinville]] Psychiatric Hospital in Algeria. He worked there until his deportation in January 1957.<ref name="Cherki">Cherki, Alice (2000), ''Frantz Fanon. Portrait'', Paris: Seuil; Macey, David (2000), ''Frantz Fanon: A Biography'', New York: Picador Press.</ref>

Fanon's methods of treatment started evolving, particularly by beginning [[Sociotherapy|socio-therapy]] to connect with his patients' [[Culture|cultural backgrounds]]. He also trained nurses and interns. Following the outbreak of the [[Algerian War|Algerian revolution]] in November 1954, Fanon joined the [[National Liberation Front (Algeria)|Front de Libération Nationale]] (FLN), after having made contact with [[Pierre Chaulet]] at Blida in 1955. Working at a French hospital in Algeria, Fanon became responsible for treating the psychological distress of the French soldiers and officers who carried out torture in order to suppress anti-colonial resistance. Additionally, Fanon was also responsible for treating Algerian [[torture]] victims.

Fanon made extensive trips across Algeria, mainly in the [[Kabylia]] region, to study the cultural and psychological life of Algerians. His lost study of "The [[marabout]] of Si Slimane" is an example. These trips were also a means for clandestine activities, notably in his visits to the ski resort of [[Chrea]] which hid an FLN base.

===Joining the FLN and exile from Algeria===
By summer 1956, Fanon realized that he could no longer continue to support French efforts, even indirectly, via his hospital work. In November, he submitted his "Letter of Resignation to the Resident Minister", which later became an influential text of its own in [[anti-colonialist]] circles.<ref name="Azar00">{{cite journal |last1=Azar |first1=Michael |title=In the Name of Algeria: Frantz Fanon and the Algerian Revolution |journal=Eurozine |date=6 December 2000 |url=https://www.eurozine.com/in-the-name-of-algeria/ |access-date=30 December 2020}}</ref>

<blockquote>
There comes a time when silence becomes dishonesty. The ruling intentions of personal existence are not in accord with the permanent assaults on the most commonplace values. For many months, my conscience has been the seat of unpardonable debates. And the conclusion is the determination not to despair of man, in other words, of myself. The decision I have reached is that I cannot continue to bear a responsibility at no matter what cost, on the false pretext that there is nothing else to be done.
</blockquote>

Shortly afterwards, Fanon was expelled from Algeria and moved to [[Tunis]], where he joined the FLN openly. He was part of the editorial collective of ''[[Al Moudjahid]]'', for which he wrote until the end of his life. He also served as [[Ambassador]] to [[Ghana]] for the Provisional Algerian Government ([[Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic|GPRA]]). He attended conferences in [[Accra]], [[Conakry]], [[Addis Ababa]], [[Kinshasa|Leopoldville]], [[Cairo]] and [[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli]]. Many of his shorter writings from this period were collected posthumously in the book ''[[Toward the African Revolution]]''. In this book, Fanon reveals war tactical strategies; in one chapter, he discusses how to open a southern front to the war and how to run the supply lines.<ref name="Cherki"/>

Upon his return to [[Tunis]], after his exhausting trip across the [[Sahara]] to open a Third Front, Fanon was diagnosed with [[leukemia]]. He went to the [[Soviet Union]] for treatment and experienced [[Cure|remission]] of his illness. When he came back to Tunis once again, he dictated his testament ''[[The Wretched of the Earth]]''. When he was not confined to his bed, he delivered lectures to [[Armée de Libération Nationale]] (ALN) officers at [[Ghardimaou|Ghardimao]] on the Algerian–Tunisian border. He traveled to [[Rome]] for a three-day meeting with [[Jean-Paul Sartre]], who had greatly influenced his work. Sartre agreed to write a preface to Fanon's last book, ''The Wretched of the Earth''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Massey |first1=David |title=Frantz Fanon: A Biography |date=2000 |publisher=Picador}}</ref>
[[File:Tombe Frantz-Fanon Aïn-Kerma.jpg|thumb|alt=Fanon's final resting place in Aïn Kerma, Algeria|Fanon's grave in [[Aïn Kerma]], Algeria]]

===Death and aftermath===
With his health declining, Fanon's comrades urged him to seek treatment in the [[United States|U.S.]] as his Soviet doctors had suggested.<ref name=":8">{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=Gordon R. |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aVUYDAAAQBAJ&dq=fanon+death+pneumonia+living+fanon&pg=PA25 |title=Living Fanon: Global Perspectives |date=2016-04-30 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-230-11999-4 |editor-last=Gibson |editor-first=Nigel C. |pages=25 |language=en |chapter=Requiem on a Life Well Lived: In Memory of Fanon}}</ref> In 1961, the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] arranged a trip under the promise of stealth for further leukemia treatment at a [[National Institutes of Health]] facility.<ref name=":8" /><ref>Codevilla, Angelo, ''Informing Statecraft'' (1992, New York).</ref> During his time in the United States, Fanon was handled by CIA agent Oliver Iselin.<ref>Meaney, Thomas (2019), "Frantz Fanon and the CIA Man", ''The American Historical Review'' '''124'''(3): 983–995.</ref> As Lewis R. Gordon points out, the circumstances of Fanon's stay are somewhat disputed: "What has become orthodoxy, however, is that he was kept in a hotel without treatment for several days until he contracted pneumonia."<ref name=":8" />

On 6 December 1961, Fanon died from [[double pneumonia]] in [[Bethesda, Maryland]]. He had begun [[Leukemia#Treatment|leukemia treatment]] but far too late.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Macey |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BdVRpzeA47YC&dq=fanon+death+pneumonia&pg=PA484 |title=Frantz Fanon: A Biography |date=2012-11-13 |publisher=Verso Books |orig-year=2000 |isbn=978-1-84467-848-8 |pages=484 |language=en}}</ref> He had been admitted under the name of '''Ibrahim Omar Fanon''', a Libyan ''[[nom de guerre]]'' he had assumed in order to enter a hospital in [[Rome]] after being wounded in [[Morocco]] during a mission for the [[Algerian National Liberation Front]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hopkins1.edublogs.org/files/2010/10/WE-Foreward-by-Homi-Bhabha-2004-1pw5wvp.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200511155113/https://hopkins1.edublogs.org/files/2010/10/WE-Foreward-by-Homi-Bhabha-2004-1pw5wvp.pdf |archive-date=2020-05-11 |url-status=live|title=Foreword: Framing Fanon|first=Homi K.|last=Bhabha|access-date=10 September 2016}}</ref> He was buried in Algeria after [[lying in state]] in [[Tunisia]]. Later, his body was moved to a [[martyr]]s' (''Chouhada'') [[Cemetery|graveyard]] at [[Aïn Kerma]] in eastern Algeria.

Frantz Fanon was survived by his French wife, Josie (née Dublé), their son, Olivier Fanon, and his daughter from a previous relationship, [[Mireille Fanon Mendès-France|Mireille Fanon-Mendès France]]. [[Josie Fanon]] later became disillusioned with the government and after years of depression and drinking died by [[suicide]] in [[Algiers]] in 1989.<ref name="Cherki"/><ref>Zeilig, L. (2016) ''Frantz Fanon, Militant Philosopher of Third World Liberation.'' I.B.Tauris & Co. Ltd. p 232</ref> Mireille became a professor of international law and conflict resolution and serves as president of the Frantz Fanon Foundation. Olivier became president of the Frantz Fanon National Association, which was created in Algiers in 2012.<ref name="FANON2015">{{cite book|author=Frantz Fanon|title=Écrits sur l'aliénation et la liberté|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z5jNCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT14|date=29 October 2015|publisher=La Decourverte|isbn=978-2-7071-8871-7|page=14}}</ref>