May Made Me: An Oral History of the 1968 Uprising in France

by Mitchell Abidor

“ You threw paving stones at [the cops]?”
“ Oh yeah. I had no problem doing that. And I threw marbles as well that we stole from stores. And towards the end we even managed to steal tractors from construction sites and we knocked over trees with them .”
The mass protests that shook France in May 1968 were exciting, dangerous, creative, and influential, changing European politics to this day. Students demonstrated, workers went on general strike, and factories and universities were occupied. Before it was all over, children, homemakers, and the elderly were swept up in the life-changing events that targeted bureaucratic capitalism and the staid Communist Party. The French state was on the ropes and feared civil war or revolution. Decades later, here are the eye-opening oral testimonies of those young rebels who demanded the impossible.
Published on the 50th anniversary of those momentous events,  May Made Me presents the legacy of the how those explosive experiences changed both the individual and history.
“These powerful and moving testimonies create an eye-opening account of the inspiring events of May ’68, which are more relevant for today’s activists than ever before.” —Paul Mason, author of A Guide to Our Future

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Social Movements, Politics, France, Society, French Literature

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 20, 2018

Reviews

[Paul Ataua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating oral history of the events of May 68 in Paris that really gets lots of things right, especially how the workers movements and student movements seemed to be two completely different forces with different goals, the workers with their quantitative demands and the students and others with less definable objectives. The book makes the claim that this never really added up to a revolutionary movement, but stops short of actually making sense of what it was. It suggests the ‘failure’ of May 68 by pointing out how all the major social changes that followed, such as women’s rights and the acceptance of homosexuality, came about in other countries without undergoing events like those in France, but it possibly underplays the effect that those events had on the people involved in them and how they had an effect on later developments, both personal and societal. I feel convinced that the events had a much more important effect, and maybe , just maybe, the events played a major role in helping to bring about this age where we are less ready to believe in 'truths' that are thrust upon us as unassailable and in a world that is unchangeable. A good read!

[Andy Bedingfield-Haase · Rating 5 out of 5]

as oral histories go this one astounds. full of valuable interviews and insight from people who took part in the may 1968 uprising against the gaullist order. they came from all walks and all sorts of ideological underpinnings and have so much of importance to impart to us in this age of unrest. abidor allows his subjects to speak freely about their views on what worked and what didn't, and if you have any interest in these events you really owe it to yourself to check out these accounts.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting genre which I have never sampled before. I think I need to read a conventional historical narrative on the 1968 uprisings to gain more familiarity. This is, however, an illuminating book of its type.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great oral history. Digs into a lot of the contradictions of May and provides a good variety of viewpoints (on the protesting side of course). Dragged a bit by the end for me, but overall very well constructed and engaging.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clarification of scope of the 68' uprisings in France.

[Laura]

This book is not so much stories about throwing paving stones as it is stories about handing out flyers.

[Khalid Kurji · Rating 4 out of 5]

A partial, though immersive, tour of the events and the arguments within them