• 1 Fantastinouï is a neologism created by children for Okapi magazine. It is a fusion of two words: fa (...)

1Launched in 1972, which is to say in the direct wake of the “events” of 1968, the children’s magazine Okapi would seem to be an excellent example of the dynamism and contradictions that characterised May 68. This article seeks to shed light on the ways in which the “spirit of 68” can be found in this magazine for children, which was unique in France at the time, and is today considered a classic in its genre.

• 2 Charon Jean-Marie, "Lire et grandir en s'amusant, ou la grande aventure de la presse des jeunes", E (...)

3France has of course had serial publications for children since the end of the 18^th century.2 The particularity of the titles produced by the Bonne Press lay first in their promotion of a Catholic vision of life in a hostile environment, with the secularisation of primary schools by the Jules Ferry laws in 1882, the forced exile of religious congregations in 1902, and the separation of Church and State in 1905. The second specificity of the Bonne Presse was to be found in the way it developed magazine titles adapted to each age group from small children to adolescents, as well as girls and boys, and this from the beginning of the 20^th century onwards.

• 3 https://www.nyrb.com/products/the-green-hand-and-other-stories?variant=30965876551

7The magazine made frequent use of comic strips, in a special blend of amateurism and boldness that was typical of those experimental times. In February 1973, Nicole Claveloux first brought out the character of Grabote, a character that readers loved to hate and who became the mascot for the magazine. This was the same Nicole Claveloux whose talent had come to the fore through the publishing venture of Harlin Quist, and who was also a prime representative of the alternative feminist scene of graphic novelists. Today, in a recent American edition of some of her later comics, she is understood to be “an unforgettable, unjustly neglected master of French comics3”.

• 4 N°69, September 1974.
• 5 N°76, January 1975.

10The school's headmaster however embodies older methods and also the grumbling voices of a section of contemporary society which did not approve of the new values: and I quote: "You too often let them do exactly what they want4." The magazine's editorial board responded to the headmaster's message, or rather to the reluctant parents he represents: "The Chouette de Classe is an ideal class because both pupils and teacher co-exist harmoniously, continually striving to ensure that each child is in the best possible place, and is able to fulfil the role that best suits them5." What was the outcome to which this new teaching method was supposed to lead?

• 6 N°72, November 1974.

11Autonomy and awareness of responsibility in the Chouette de Classe seem to be the watchwords that Okapi communicates to readers who write in. Indeed, the desire for the magazine to respond to the spirit of 1968 seems to come, initially at least, from the readers themselves, in their letters to the magazine. Many children send letters to the paper expressing fears, their outlook on the world and their desire to do something for it. They want to protect wildlife, prevent pollution in the cities where they live. A girl called Béatrice for example raises a cry for action against the Péchiney company which was setting up a fluorine quarry in Vézelay6. Okapi responds by supplying the addresses of wildlife protection groups, and later, groups helping children orphaned in the Vietnam war. The concerns of the young readers very quickly shift from the wildlife cause to the injustices of war and poverty.

• 7 Editorial, n°32, March 1973.

12Though the magazine could have contented itself with articles on animal welfare or crafts activities, editorial policy became politically active, inviting readers to get involved at an early age: "Soon you'll be able to vote when you're 19. But today, you can be interested in politics, because you are the ones who are building the world you'll be living in for a long time7." In the same issue, a feature titled Dis-moi Denys (Tell me Denys) shows a mother whose involvement in a consumer group gives her children the idea of protesting against the demolition of their playground.

• 8 N°49, November 1973.
• 9 N°74, December 1974.
• 10 N°77, February 1975.
• 11 N°34, April 1973.

The idea is to initiate young readers in collective action. They are pre-teens who need explanations and guidance because they want to do something, to be involved. Pierre, for instance, wants to hear about the workers' strike at the Lip8 watch-making factory. The comic strip Route Libre (Freeway) refers to confrontations between steel workers at Fos-sur-Mer and the CRS9 riot police, while the feature Ça c'est la vie (That's Life) highlights the way poor families are thrown out of their houses and re-housed in the suburbs10. Dis-moi Denys wonders "why is it that in France the Africans and the Portuguese do all the hard work11", concluding "this abnormal state of affairs is no longer acceptable". Okapi does not avoid the tough subjects.

• 12 May 1975.

14The magazine started out along relatively classical lines with a lot of features on games and animals, in response to their readers’ requests, something new came to the fore: social justice. The topic was dealt with mainly in Dis-moi Denys, a feature created to give straight answers to readers' queries. Soon, questions were not so much about religion and daily life but more about social issues. Between September 1974 and May 1975, Dis-moi Denys devoted thirteen issues to debates on justice. Starting with everyday phrases like "It's fair/It's not fair" with ideas based on Biblical references, the feature soon went on to consider social justice and ended with two issues on late 19^th century politician Jean Jaurès and his stand against social injustice. The last episode celebrates "the unassuming march of workers acting for justice. It is hoped that all the efforts made throughout the world for a better distribution of the earth's wealth and for a reduction in the gap between those who have everything and those who have nothing will finally bring about a Society where all people will come together in true companionship"12. The Christian message clearly combines here with the workers' struggle for social justice.

• 13 "Voir plus loin que le bout de son nez", n°79, March 1975.

15The link with the young readers' daily lives is made explicit13: "In your life at school, you are part of a group. […] No one can do much by themselves. The causes of injustice have to be made known and action taken in a movement of solidarity. […] We can all work together so justice moves forward in Society." This is clearly further encouragement not only to have a sense of outrage but to act.

• 14 N°22, 1-15 October 1972.
• 15 N°33, 15-31 March 1973.

16In this way, the full impact of the image and motto of Il faut agir (We need to act) can be understood when it came out with issue n°44 in the form of a stick-on badge for readers who had asked for a T-shirt in the magazine colours. The motto derived from an episode in the comic strip Couscous et Cannelle14 (Couscous and Cinnamon), which had already been used to illustrate one of the Dis-moi Denys15 features, and showed just how enthusiastic the editorial board were for the image of the two little characters, a boy and a girl whose fists were raised in protest. Collective action, initially through protest against injustice, was one of the ideas that the review, which first came out in 1971, presented to the children of May 1968. Had the Augustinians of the Assumption created a revolutionary review?

• 16 N°51, December 1973.
• 17 For instance n°20, September 1972.

18Initially, the tone of the magazine remained true to the values of the Catholic youth movements – hygienism, healthy camaraderie, the emancipating value of work and physical effort, the spirit of Christian charity and even sacrifice. In an episode of Chouette de classe16, one of the girls in the class wins a doll on the lottery and decides to give it to little Jamila who lives in a shanty town close to the social housing where she and her family live. Documentary features in the magazine extolled work in the open air, risk taking and selflessness as for instance in life-saving rescue work. The children who feature in the regular strip cartoon Chouette de classe always go on holiday to the mountains or the countryside where as young city-dwellers they become acquainted with the hard physical labour endured by peasant farmers and shepherds17. Exaltation of life in the open air and corporal development through physical effort go hand in hand with latently anti-modernist views, such as castigating television which made children passive, and life in the polluted cities. The temptation to reproduce a reactionary discourse opposing town and country, modernity and tradition, production and consumption is apparent. Seen in this light, the magazine sometimes employed the rhetoric of the past.

• 18 N°32, March 1973.
• 19 N°37, May 1973.

21Editorial discourse is likewise ambivalent. With the new mixed schools, Okapi recommends girls to show an interest in the boys' games, but does not suggest the reverse18. To the question "Why can't women do the same jobs as men?"19, the editors reply that women are not as strong as men which means that many professions are not open to them, and especially being a mother, which is exclusive to women, takes up a lot of time and care: "It's a real job that prevents women from doing something else."

• 20 "Dis-moi Denys", n°31, February 1973.
• 21 "Dis-moi Denys", n°62, June 1974.
• 22 N°73, November 1974.

22In addition to such stereotyping, the discourse on the use of physical force is very curious. There are several descriptions of conflict situations where a character or a reader is encouraged to behave in a "virile" manner, i.e. by fighting. One reader who is bullied at school20 is told that he should take up judo so he can fight back: "If you stood up for yourself, you wouldn't need to write to me and you wouldn't have had all this trouble!" Another reader who writes in to say he doesn't like fighting21 is told: "When you respect yourself, you don't let yourself get pushed around all the time. And you're ready to fight even though you might be the worse for it." In Chouette de classe, Bruno, the top of the class who is teased by the others, takes up boxing with a former professional so he can toughen up and earn his classmates' respect22. The message is clear: gender division relies on an outmoded view of virility; masculinity is linked to physical strength and an ability to use violence… an outlook where girls have little role to play.

• 23 N°50, December 1973.

24Discussion of such issues was in fact requested by readers as soon as the magazine came out. In December 197323, a young reader called Carmen asked Okapi to do an issue on babies, "especially the baby inside the mother's tummy, because I have a talk to do in class."

• 24 N°49, November 1973.

25In 1973, Dis-moi Denys dealt with the question "What is sexuality?24". This time, however, the discourse did not hark back to the past: "The parts of the body which differ from boys to girls refer to gender. Sexuality is a drive that attracts boys and girls, men and women to one another. A drive that attracts them with their hearts and also their bodies, and which makes them want to transcend themselves. Love, wanting to have children, wanting to be physically happy and to 'live', all that is part of sexuality…" The article concludes with an invitation for children to express themselves: "Living simply, naturally, also means getting the right information when you want to learn about something. No question is ever stupid or shameful. To live to the full, you need to be aware of everything about life."

• 25 Readers' mail, n°61.

28In less than four months, Okapi unveiled the mysteries of the human body, a fascinating topic for readers who were old enough to be reading the magazine. The editors commented: "[We] do not see why the story of the body should not be told. It is a beautiful, simple story and yet so amazing25." For a magazine that tended to limit boys' and girls' roles in society, this was bold indeed.