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

Sep 28, 2026

May Made Me is an oral history documenting the 1968 uprising in France through interviews and collected voices. The book revisits “May ’68” by tracing experiences across different groups, including veterans, students in Paris, participants outside Paris, and contributors connected to film and broader political currents. It also acknowledges the collaborators who helped locate interviewees and supports the narrative with references to interview transcripts preserved in an online archive.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages316

Reading Time8 h 7 min

AccessFree to download

Acknowledgements

Abbreviations

Timeline of Events in 1968

Introduction: May ’68 Revisited

Veterans in the Struggle

Students in Paris

May Outside Paris

May and Film

Some Anarchists

About the Author

May Made Me May Made Me An Oral History of the 1968 Uprising in France Mitchell Abidor This edition © 2018 AK Press (Chico, Oakland, Edinburgh, Baltimore) ISBN: 978-1-84935-310-6 E-ISBN: 978-1-84935-299-4 Library of Congress Control Number: 2017947342 AK Press 370 Ryan Ave. \# 100 Chico, CA 95973 USA [www.akpress.org](www.akpress.org)[ ](www.akpress.org)[www.akuk.com](www.akuk.com)[ ](www.akuk.com)[akpress@akpress.org](akpress@akpress.org) The above addresses would be delighted to provide you with the latest AK Press distribution catalog, which features books, pamphlets, zines, and stylish apparel published and/or distributed by AK Press. Alternatively, visit our websites for the complete catalog, latest news, and secure ordering. This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental standards of the country of origin. Copyright © Mitchell Abidor 2018 Printed in the USA. People say about me: You’re someone who made May, and I answer that it’s May made me. —Thierry Porré Ce qu’il avait vu, était-ce une bataille? Et en second lieu, cette bataille, était-ce Waterloo? —Stendhal, La Chartreuse de Parme Contents Acknowledgements Abbreviations Timeline of Events in 1968 1 . Introduction: May ’68 Revisited 2 . Veterans in the Struggle Jean-Jacques Lebel Alain Krivine Prisca Bachelet Henri Simon 3 . Students in Paris Suzanne Borde Isabelle Saint-Saëns Sonia Fayman Jean-Pierre Fournier Pauline Steiner Pierre Mercier 4 . May Outside Paris Jacques Wajnsztejn (Lyon) Joseph Potiron (La Chapelle-sur-Erdre) Guy Texier (Saint-Nazaire), Bernard Vauselle (Saint Nazaire), Dominique Barbe (Nantes) Myriam Chédotal (Saint-Nazaire), Eliane Paul-Di Vicenzo (Nantes) Jean-Michel Rabaté (Bordeaux) José and Hélène Chatroussat (Rouen) 5 . May and Film Michel Andrieu Pascal Aubier and Bernard Eisenschitz 6 . Some Anarchists Daniel Pinos Wally Rosell Thierry Porré About the Author Acknowledgements I would like to thank all those who participated in this project, as well as those who made it possible. Jean-Pierre Duteuil (who I never had the opportunity to meet), Helen Arnold, Sebastian Budgen, Yves Coleman, Lou Marin, Marie-Pierre Fournier, Philippe Dubacq, and Christophe“Patsy” Patillon all assisted me in locating participants willing to be interviewed. Marie-Pierre is owed extra thanks for having located most of the participants in Saint-Nazaire and Nantes, as well as for having hosted me during my stay in the region and providing a home for the interviews. Space constraints forced me to omit several interviews, and I apologize to those involved. Every person I interviewed brought something new and interesting, and performing this triage was a diﬀicult task. I apologize to Frank Cassenti, Yves Coleman, Helen Arnold, Daniel Blanchard, Eric Hazan, Catherine Lévy, Colette Danappe, Rémi Drouet, Scylla, and Joël Quélard. Transcripts of their interviews can be found at the Marxists Internet Archive—[www.marxists.org](www.marxists.org)—in the May ’68 archive of the French history section. I can’t speak highly enough of the people I interviewed, of their warmth and generosity; people were generous not only with their time, but with the books and newspapers they’d saved since May ’68, feeling these would be more beneﬁcial for this book and its readers than for them.

FAQs

What kind of source material does May Made Me use to describe the 1968 uprising in France?

It presents an oral history based on interviews with participants, including transcriptions referenced for further reading.

How does the book structure the story of May ’68?

The contents section organizes the narrative by themes and locations, including veterans, students in Paris, and events outside Paris, plus segments on film and specific anarchists.

Who is credited with helping the author find interview participants?

The acknowledgements list multiple individuals, noting especially assistance in locating participants in Saint-Nazaire and Nantes and hosting the author during the stay.

Sep 28, 2026

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