ART OF Reflections
Karim Shaker. France.
How Does One Identity Form From Two?
Born in Egypt. A move to the South of France at 6 months old. Stops in Paris, New York and now London along the way. The question we kept coming back to when we spoke to Karim was how do you form an identity.
Football in a funny way answers this simply. You are your collective experience. The fact that vast majority of players are eligible to play for multiple countries is testament to that.
Karim grew up in what he calls a melting pot, both on and off the pitch. When you hear the conversations that surround the national squad it puts into acute context the lived experience that Karim shares. By all accounts a Frenchman but beaming with pride that Egypt belongs to him as he does to Egypt. The pesky question of ‘How French are Les Bleus?’. You only have to speak to Karim for a short while to see firsthand that the answer is, ‘very fucking French’. Caricatures and stereotypes persist, but football always shines a light on the truth.
These formative years produced a philosophy that helped him become an adopted son of South London ‘dive in head first and don’t think twice’. The wisdom here is that being part of a city or a community, means taking the time out to connect with a place rather than merely occupy it. Well, he’s a beaming, card carrying Crystal Palace ticket holder. No doubt buoyed by the one Jean-Philippe, the bringer of the boom and the pride of France (and the Shaker household).
What’s clear is identity builds within for Karim as life moves around. Picking up new pieces all the time as he goes. Whether it’s Marseille or Crystal Palace. Antibes to anywhere. He’s chasing a meaning to things, not because he’s lacking abundance but because there’s always room for more.
As Karim would say, “Go and see.” We encourage you all to give life a go.
Allez Allez!
