The documentary as a site of commemoration: filming the Free French dissidents from the French Antilles

Thousands of young men and women left the French Antilles (Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guyana) to join the Free French from 1941 to 1944. The contributions made by these Dissidents (Antillean Resistance fighters) has for decades been overlooked both at home and in metropolitan France. This article explores what Euzhan Palcy’s 2006 documentary, Parcours de Dissidents (The Journey of the Dissidents), reveals about how such historical omissions shape questions of national identity and belonging in the Antilles, through an analysis of its use of testimonies, archival footage and personal mementos. It also examines the film’s afterlife: how it has been used as a tool to demand greater recognition for these veterans and ultimately acts as an important site of commemoration, when physical memorials are still lacking.