Paris 'Spider-Man' hero granted French citizenship for daring rescue
A young Malian migrant to France who on Saturday effortlessly scaled four stories of an apartment building's balconies in less than 30 seconds to save a child dangling from a railing was granted French citizenship and an audience with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday to honor his bravery.
Mamoudou Gassama, 22, has been dubbed the "Spider-Man" of Paris for the ease and speed with which he acted. "I like children. I would have hated to see him getting hurt in front of me," Gassama said after the rescue. "I ran and I looked for solutions to save him, and, thank God, I scaled the front of the building to the balcony."
Gassama "explained to me that he arrived from Mali a few months ago with the dream of making a life for himself here," said Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who also met with him. "I replied that his heroic act is an example for all citizens and that the city of Paris will obviously be keen to support him in his efforts to settle in France."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In addition to citizenship, Gassama has been offered a job with the Paris fire brigade and awarded a medal for courage. Watch the daring rescue and his conversation with Macron below. Bonnie Kristian
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
Is Cop29 a 'waste of time'?
Today's Big Question World leaders stay away as spectre of Donald Trump haunts flagship UN climate summit
By The Week UK Published
-
The rise of the celebrity chef tour
The Week Recommends Chefs and food writers are hosting sell-out live events around the world
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
'Thank you for your service'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published