Mamoudou Gassama

Mamoudou Gassama (born 1996) is a Malian-French citizen, living in France who, on 26 May 2018, climbed four stories on the exterior of a block of flats in the 18th arrondissement of Paris ( 51 rue Marx-Dormoy) in 30 seconds to save a four-year-old boy who was hanging from a balcony.[1][2] The child’s father had apparently left the boy unattended to go shopping, and was subsequently charged with leaving his son unsupervised.[3]

For the Spanish handball player, see Mamadou Gassama (handballer).

Aftermath

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo called Gassama "Spider-Man of the 18th" in reference to the city’s 18th arrondissement (district) where the rescue took place.[4][5] On 28 May 2018, President Emmanuel Macron met Gassama at the Élysée Palace to thank him personally. He was awarded the Médaille d’honneur pour acte de courage et de dévouement and offered a role in the fire service which he subsequently took up; as of December 2018 he is working a ten month contract as an intern.[6] At the instigation of President Macron, Gassama was made a French citizen in September 2018.[7][8][9]

Personal life

Gassama was born in Mali. He travelled to Europe via Burkina Faso, Niger and Libya, where he was arrested and beaten. He crossed the Mediterranean and obtained papers to stay legally in Italy, but travelled to France in September 2017 to join his elder brother.[10] News reports emphasized the similarity between Gassama and Lassana Bathily, a Muslim immigrant from Mali who was hailed as a hero in France and offered citizenship for his bravery in the Hypercacher kosher supermarket siege of 2015.[2] On 24 June 2018 Gassama received the BET Humanitarian Award in Los Angeles.[11][12][13]

References
  1. Sage, Adam (28 May 2018). "'Spiderman' rescues boy, 4, from balcony". The Times.
  2. Breeden, Aurelien; Cowell, Alan (28 May 2018). "'Spider-Man,' a Migrant in Paris, Scales Building to Save a Child". The New York Times.
  3. "Paris Il escalade un immeuble pour sauver in extremis un enfant suspendu dans le vide".
  4. Mazza, Ed. "Real-Life Spider-Man Scrambles Up Building To Save A Dangling Child". Huffington Post. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  5. Nash, Konstan. ""SPIDERMAN" SAVED A BABY IN PARIS, CLIMBING FOR 30 SECONDS ON THE FOURTH FLOOR". Bobr Times. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  6. "The Spiderman of Paris: What happened next?". BBC News. 24 December 2018.
  7. "Mamoudou Gassama: Mali 'Spiderman' becomes French citizen". BBC News. 13 September 2018.
  8. "DIRECT. Enfant sauvé d'une chute à Paris : Mamoudou Gassama recevra son titre de séjour dès mardi". 28 May 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  9. France: un sans-papiers malien qui a sauvé un enfant sera naturalisé français, AFP (May 28, 2018).
  10. "France: Macron rewards migrant hero who saved dangling child". ABC News. 28 May 2018.
  11. https://www.20minutes.fr/arts-stars/culture/2295007-20180623-mamoudou-gassama-recompense-bet-awards-aussi-booba-niska - 20minutes.fr
  12. "À Los Angeles, Mamoudou Gassama reçoit un award pour son acte d'héroïsme". Europe 1.
  13. https://www.huffingtonpost.fr/2018/06/24/aux-bet-awards-mamoudou-gassama-a-ete-recompense-pour-son-heroisme_a_23466899/ - huffingtonpost.fr
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