How has the French far right managed to cancel a Black anti-racism scholar for ‘racism’?

The academic Maboula Soumahoro, whose event at the European parliament was blocked by far-right politicians. Photograph: Eric Fougere/Corbis/Getty Images

Maboula Soumahoro is a renowned French scholar and public intellectual. The holder of a PhD earned through studies both in France and at Columbia University in the US, she is an associate professor at the University of Tours, a specialist on the African diaspora, and one of France’s foremost academics when it comes to race relations.

So when the European parliament decided to invite her to an internal event last month as part of a dialogue to discuss ways to “promote equality and inclusion in the workplace”, it made perfect sense.