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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Thomas Adamson

What to know about Code Noir, a shocking French law that oversaw the slavery of 1.4 million Africans

France Black Code - (Copyright 2026. The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

France’s powerful lower house voted finally to scrub a fundamental slavery-era edict from French law on Thursday.

After the National Assembly voted 254-0 to adopt the bill to repeal Code Noir, it now goes to the Senate, where supporters expect it to be approved as well. It's not clear when the Senate vote will happen.

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