Vigilance Committee on Public Uses of History

The Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoire (CVUH) is a French association of historians founded in June 2005 by academics Gérard Noiriel, Michèle Riot-Sarcey and Nicolas Offenstadt. It was created in the wake of the Olivier Grenouilleau affair and in opposition to the law of 23 February 2005 that recognized the 'positive role' of French overseas presence, particularly in North Africa. The association publicly appeared on 17 June 2005 with the publication of its manifesto. It was declared to the Paris prefecture of police in February 2006. The CVUH describes itself as a collective intellectual. Its purpose is to monitor public uses of history for memorial ends, notably by political figures, and to defend a critical, scholarly approach to the past against official or militant narratives. Unlike the movement Liberté pour l'histoire, the CVUH does not oppose memory laws in principle; it distinguishes between laws that directly regiment historical work and those that serve as societal declarations about itself. It has regularly criticized Liberté pour l'histoire, including its 2008 book published by CNRS Éditions and its 'Appel de Blois'. Activities include publishing op-eds and participating in audiovisual broadcasts during memory controversies, organizing study days and workshops, coordinating a book series with Éditions Agone in Marseille, and maintaining a website that monitors issues of history and memory. The CVUH's 'Passé & présent' collection with Agone has published seven titles between 2007 and 2017, including works on national identity, colonial history, the teaching of history, and the French Revolution. Half of the royalties from the collection go to the CVUH, making it an important source of funding. The committee has been led by several presidents: Gérard Noiriel (2005–2009), Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch (2009–2010), Laurence De Cock (2010–2011?), Laurent Colantonio (2011–2015), and Natacha Coquery (since 2017). It continues to organize public events, such as a 2 October 2021 meeting on the assassination of Samuel Paty and identity assignations, and maintains an active online presence, having moved its main site to hypotheses.org in November 2021 while keeping older content on its blog.

The Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoire (CVUH) was founded in June 2005 by academics Gérard Noiriel, Michèle Riot-Sarcey and Nicolas Offenstadt. It emerged in the context of the debate over the 'positive effects of colonization' surrounding the law of 23 February 2005, which recognized the 'positive role' of French overseas presence, particularly in North Africa. The association publicly appeared on 17 June 2005 with the publication of its manifesto. It was declared to the Paris prefecture of police in February 2006. According to historian Sébastien Ledoux, the CVUH brings together, besides secondary school teachers, 'historians working on research objects marginalized in the academic field (gender, immigration, slavery, colonization)'. Historians Jean-François Sirinelli and Yann Potin note that the founding members are anchored on the left or far left, as evidenced by the association's name, which alludes to the Comité de vigilance des intellectuels antifascistes of the interwar period. The CVUH has had several presidents: Gérard Noiriel (2005–2009), Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch (2009–2010), Laurence De Cock (2010–2011?), Laurent Colantonio (2011–2015), and Natacha Coquery (since 2017). A key aspect of the CVUH's history is its stance on memory laws. Unlike the movement Liberté pour l'histoire, founded in late 2005 and presided by René Rémond then Pierre Nora, which calls for the repeal of all memory laws, the CVUH does not oppose memory laws in principle. It distinguishes between laws that directly regiment historical work and those that serve as societal declarations about itself. The CVUH has regularly opposed Liberté pour l'histoire, criticizing in 2008 its book published by CNRS Éditions and its 'Appel de Blois'. Activities include organizing study days and workshops, such as a study day at the Sorbonne on 4 March 2006, and a 2016 study day on 'The republican model and its uses'. The CVUH also coordinates the 'Passé & présent' collection with Éditions Agone in Marseille. Seven titles were published between 2007 and 2017, including 'À quoi sert « l'identité nationale »' by Gérard Noiriel (2007), 'Comment Nicolas Sarkozy écrit l'histoire de France' (2008), 'Enjeux politiques de l'histoire coloniale' by Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch (2009), 'La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire' (2009), 'Pour quoi faire la Révolution' (2012), 'Conversation sur la naissance des inégalités' (2013), and 'La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire II' (2017). Half of the royalties from the collection go to the CVUH, making it an important source of funding. The CVUH maintains a website that monitors history and memory issues. In November 2021, it moved its main site to hypotheses.org, while keeping older content on its blog. It continues to organize public events, such as a 2 October 2021 meeting on the assassination of Samuel Paty and identity assignations.

• CVUH founded by Gérard Noiriel, Michèle Riot-Sarcey and Nicolas Offenstadt.

• Public appearance with publication of the manifesto.

• Declared to the Paris prefecture of police.

• Study day held at the Sorbonne.

• First book in 'Passé & présent' collection published: 'À quoi sert « l'identité nationale »' by Gérard Noiriel.

• Publication of 'Comment Nicolas Sarkozy écrit l'histoire de France'.

• Publication of 'Enjeux politiques de l'histoire coloniale' by Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch.

• Publication of 'La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire'.

• Publication of 'Pour quoi faire la Révolution'.

• Publication of 'Conversation sur la naissance des inégalités'.

• Study day on 'The republican model and its uses' announced.

• Publication of 'La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire II'.

• Public meeting on the assassination of Samuel Paty and identity assignations.

• CVUH moves to new website at hypotheses.org.

A collective intellectual watchdog defending critical history against political and memorial instrumentalization.

• À quoi sert « l'identité nationale »

• Comment Nicolas Sarkozy écrit l'histoire de France

• Enjeux politiques de l'histoire coloniale

• La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire : Illusions et désillusions du roman national

• Pour quoi faire la Révolution

• Conversation sur la naissance des inégalités

• La Fabrique scolaire de l'histoire II

1. 1cvuhcvuh.blogspot.com
2. 2cvuh: histoirecvuh.blogspot.com
3. 3cvuh: histoire critiquecvuh.blogspot.com
4. 4cvuh: histoire scolairecvuh.blogspot.com
5. 5Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoirewikidata.org
6. 6Comité de vigilance face aux usages publics de l'histoirefr.wikipedia.org