Adama Traoré was a Malian-French man who died in custody after being restrained and apprehended by police. His death triggered riots and protests against police brutality in France, with new resurgence and resonance since the killing of George Floyd under similar circumstances in 2020.
Death
On 19 July 2016, his 24th birthday, Adama Traoré was out with his older brother Bagui in the Paris suburb of Beaumont-sur-Oise. Police approached the two, seeking Bagui in connection to another case. The officers sought to check their IDs, but Adama did not have his and fled to a nearby house, where he was arrested. Three officers of the National Gendarmerie pinned him down while arresting him. Traoré died in the police vehicle while being transported to the police station. A total of four autopsy reports were issued for Traoré. Initially, experts failed to agree whether the cause of death was suffocation after the police pinned him to the ground, or other underlying medical conditions. Others suggested the possibility of presence of drugs in his body contributing to his death, but an initial toxicology report on his vomit was negative for marijuana and alcohol. An additional toxicology report showed a high concentration of THC in his system, demonstrating that he had consumed cannabis at most up to 12 hours, and likely within 2 to 3 hours, before his death. A French legal report in 2020 also maintained there was THC in his blood. The official medical report eventually listed heart failure as cause of death. A second autopsy commissioned by the Traoré family, however, listed asphyxiation from sustained pressure as the cause of death.
Aftermath
Traoré's death aroused suspicions that medical examiners had colluded with police in their production of the first report. A subsequent internal police investigation exonerated the officers. Activists argue that his death was the direct result of excessive use of force by the police. His death sparked major protests in Paris, Lyon, and Toulouse under the slogan Justice pour Adama. The protests styled themselves after the AmericanBlack Lives Matter movement, and similarly focused on disproportionate rates of police violence inflicted on Black and Arab French.
Legacy
Traoré became a major symbol for anti-police brutality activists. His older sister, Assa Traoré, became an anti-racism activist as a result of his death. On 29 May 2020, French legal authorities released a final report clearing the three officers involved of wrongdoing, triggering renewed protests. Protesters also expressed solidarity with the George Floyd protests that erupted in the United States and elsewhere beginning in late May. Demonstrations in Paris, Marseille, Lyon, and Lille, honoured both Floyd and Traoré. On 2 June, over 20,000 protesters marched again in Paris, along with 2,500 in Lille, 1,800 in Marseille, and 1,200 in Lyon. On 23 July 2020, French authorities recognized as proven charges of sexual assault by Traoré that had been the subject of a complaint in 2016 from a cellmate, some months before Traoré's death.
