In France’s popular districts, trust is broken between young people and the police. The slightest identity check can lead to misconduct, rebellion, or a blunder.
One case in particular is emblematic of this deadlock. For the first time in France, in Paris’ 12th arrondissement, a group of teenagers have collectively filed a complaint against a police squad for deliberate violence. During the trial, it is police’s mission itself that ended up being indicted.
Some citizens, educators, lawyers and police officers are looking for a way out. They denounce the systematic use of a violence they deem illegitimate.
By looking at their struggle, the film reveals the mechanisms of violence and the silence that surrounds it.