"I expected strong reactions, but not to this extent," says a family who were victims of racist attacks after sharing their adoption story.

Agnès Rogliano-Desideri's family was targeted by several internet users after the publication of an article about the adoption of their son Antoine, born in Congo-Brazzaville. Despite a wave of hate on social media, the mother says she is particularly touched by the numerous messages of support.

" Abject messages. "
On Tuesday, November 25, Corse Matin published an article on adoption in Corsica, featuring a main photo of Agnès Rogliano-Desideri and her son Antoine, born in Congo-Brazzaville. While the newspaper's article focused on the complexities of the adoption system on the island, some internet users concentrated on the high school student's skin color. On social media, racist remarks flooded in, directly targeting the 16-year-old and his family. " I expected strong reactions, but not to this extent ," the mother confided. " I saw horrible messages, several of them sexual in nature. "

Faced with this wave of hatred, Agnès Rogliano-Desideri's family was torn between grief and incomprehension. " The first thing Antoine said to me was 'I don't understand ,'" recounts the woman from Bastia. " In his daily life, he was never targeted because of his skin color. At football, catechism, the conservatory, or high school, my son was able to live normally, without facing racism. We always warned him and reassured him, which allows him today to take a step back from all of this. "

A "lack of knowledge of the adoption system"

Among the comments, while some are explicitly hateful, others question Agnès Rogliano-Desideri and her husband's choice to adopt a child born in Africa rather than in France. These criticisms exasperate the mother: as president of the Corsican branch of Enfance & familles d'adoption (EFA2B), the Bastia native points out "the lack of knowledge many people have about the adoption system . Very few French children are eligible for adoption ," explains Agnès Rogliano-Desideri. " Many children in foster care should, in my opinion, be adopted in their best interests, but the fact is, currently, they are not. " In the rare cases where adoption is possible, the process takes an average of four to five years to complete, according to Child Welfare Services.

This is not the first time the family has been the target of racist attacks. In 2014, Antoine, then a young boy, was photographed at the Pasquale Paoli birthday celebration in Gilles Simeoni's arms. Wearing a white headband to represent the Bastia flag, he became the subject of controversy on social media, with some invoking the "great replacement " theory while others accused the new mayor of Bastia of orchestrating a " media stunt ."

A great surge of support

Eleven years later, the president of the executive council of Corsica personally called Agnès Rogliano-Desideri to provide his support. Thursday, November 27, at the start of the session of the Corsican Assembly, it was its president, Marie-Antoinette Maupertuis, who defended the family : "Zero tolerance for abject excesses on social networks. Ùn si pò lascià fà è lascià dì parullace simule ".

" We received a lot of support from friends, strangers, and even public figures, " the mother said happily. " It really warmed our hearts; there were very few anonymous messages, unlike those who spewed their hatred online. This outpouring of messages of friendship is a perfect counterpoint to racism and horror. " The members of her family took the opportunity to thank everyone who expressed their support.

Although Agnès Rogliano-Desideri assures that she and her loved ones are " very well " today, she is thinking of " all the adoptive families who may have been hurt by the comments made in recent days ."