Myriam Ben

Myriam Ben (1928–2001) was an Algerian activist, militant, novelist, poet, and painter. She was born Marylise Ben Haïm in Algiers on October 10, 1928.[1]

Early life

Her father was a communist who had served in the French army during the October revolution, and her mother was a musician.[1] She was raised in a non-religious household, recalling later that she was seven years old before she realized her family was Jewish.[1] In 1940, the Vichy French regime revoked the 19th century Crémieux Decree, so depriving Jewish Algerians of citizenship and resulting in Ben's expulsion from the lycée she had been attending in Algiers.[1] She briefly attended a Jewish school, but completed her education at home due to her father's opposition to Zionism.[1]

Social and political justice

Even at a young age, Ben was active in the cause for social justice, particularly combatting poverty among Algeria's indigenous population.[1] At 14 she became the president of the Young Communists.[1] She was also active in the Women's Union, and through the organization's sponsorship became a school teacher in the town of Miliana.[1] She and her fellow teachers instructed the students — mostly Muslim and impoverished — but also endeavored to raise their political consciousness and promote a decolonized sense of history.[1]

Ben supported the anti-French National Liberation Front (FLN) from the beginning of the Algerian War of Independence, and joined the communist Combattants de la Libération guerrilla group where she helped transport weapons.[1] The French government considered her a criminal and sentenced her, in absentia, to 20 years of hard labor; however, she was never captured and years later would be forgiven.[1] When the war ended in 1962, Ben became a member of the independent Algerian government.[1]

Writings

Having already been a teacher, a rebel, and a legislator, in 1967 Ben began her artistic career as a poet, short-story writer, novelist, and painter.[2] She published a number of collections of poetry, a collection of short stories (Ainsi naquit un homme; 1982), and a novel (Sabrina; 1986).[2] She was also celebrated for her abstract paintings.[3]

France

In 1991, as Algeria entered a period of civil war, Ben moved to France. She continued to write and paint until her death in 2001.[1]

Bibliography
  • Le soleil assassiné, L'Harmattan, Paris, 2002. ISBN 2-7475-2176-1 (poetry)
  • Au carrefour des sacrifices, L'Harmattan, Paris, 2000.ISBN 2738413005 (poetry)
  • Quand les cartes sont truquées, L'Harmattan, Paris, 2000. ISBN 2738478654 (memoir)
  • Leïla: Les enfants du mendiant, L'Harmattan, Paris, 1998. ISBN 2738468942 (play)
  • Ainsi naquit un homme, L'Harmattan, Paris, 1993. ISBN 2738419240
  • Sabrina, ils t'ont volé ta vie, L'Harmattan, Paris, 1992. ISBN 2858027080 (novel)
  • Sur le chemin de nos pas, L'Harmattan, Paris, 1984. (poetry)
  • L'âme de Sabrina, L'Harmattan, Paris, 2001. (short story)
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References
  1. Hammerman, Jessica (2015). "Ben, Myriam". In Stillman, Norman A. (ed.). Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World. Brill. Retrieved 2018-10-14.
  2. Nasrin, Qader (2003). "Ben, Myriam". In Schirmer, Robert (ed.). Encyclopedia of African Literature. Routledge. p. 75. ISBN 9781134582235.
  3. Salami, Gitti; Blackmun Visona, Monica, eds. (2013). A Companion to Modern African Art. John Wiley & Sons. p. 262. ISBN 9781118515051.
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