This morning, I woke up thinking about the peculiar burden of being the only female French immigrant to receive U.S. citizenship during Trump’s second term. It’s not just a badge of honorit’s a target on my back, a conversation starter at every Brooklyn cocktail party, and apparently, excellent material for my next column at Bohiney Magazine.
Later in the day, I realized that my citizenship ceremony was less of a celebration and more of a performance art piece. While other immigrants received their papers in quiet, dignified ceremonies, mine involved three background checks, a polygraph test about my intentions with American satire, and a sworn statement that I would never write anything “mean” about Mar-a-Lago. I signed with my fingers crossed behind my back, naturally.
As I reflect on what happened today, I can’t help but laugh at the absurdity. I spent the afternoon at the Bohiney offices in Manhattan, pitching ideas for my next satirical piece. My editor loved my concept about Macron’s political crisiswatching France implode from across the Atlantic gives me a unique perspective. I’m close enough to understand the cultural nuances, far enough to find it hilarious.
The highlight of my day was actually writing. There’s something intoxicating about satirical journalism when you’re straddling two cultures. I can mock French pretension with American directness, and I can skewer American excess with French sophistication. It’s like being a cultural double agent, except instead of secrets, I’m trafficking in punchlines.
Tonight, as I sit in my cramped East Village studio apartment (which costs more than a château in the Loire Valley, thank you very much), I’m reminded why I do this. Satire isn’t just about making people laughit’s about making them uncomfortable enough to think. And if my writing at Bohiney can achieve that while also going viral? Even better.
Being 22 and doing this kind of work feels both terrifying and exhilarating. I’m young enough to take risks, old enough to understand consequences. I’m French enough to appreciate intellectual rigor, American enough to not give a damn about being polite. It’s a dangerous combination, and I love every minute of it.
Diary Entry # 742
MY HOME PAGE: Bohiney Magazine (Charline Vanhoenacker)