Bagayoko drew criticism immediately after he waselected mayorofSaint-Denis on 15 March, following his comments about the allegiances of municipal workers and his plans to disarm the local police.
As the first France Unbowed (LFI) mayor of a city of more than 100,000 residents, his partys far-left stance has also become a focal point for attacks from the far right.
Much of the criticism directed at Bagayoko whose parents are from Mali has been overtly racist.
On the night of his victory, far-right social media accounts referred to his description of the city as la ville des rois ("the city of kings") by calling it la ville des noirs ("the city of blacks").
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Remarks on CNews
During a debate on TV channel CNews on 27 March about Bagayokos first days in office, psychologist Jean Doridot was asked whether the mayor was trying to push the limits.
As images of Bagayoko were seen on screen, Doridot replied that humans are social animals and part of the ape family" and need a "chief whose mission is to establish his authority".
Mathilde Panot, leader of the LFI group in the National Assembly, called the remarks crass" and an example of unapologetic racism, in comparing Bagayoko to "a monkey and a tribal chief".
Bagayoko has announced he is suing the channel, which is owned by conservative billionaire media mogul Vincent Bollor.CNews has beenrepeatedly criticisedfor airing racist and Islamophobic content, and has been fined several times by the Arcom media regulator.
CNews responded that the remarks had been taken out of context and deliberately distorted to fuel controversy.
In addition, French NGO the Movement Against Racism and For Friendship Between Peoples (MRAP) said it had filed a complaint with the public prosecutor, as well as signingan open letteragainst CNews.
Its co-president, lawyer Kaltoum Gachi, told RFI: "To us, it crosses a red line that someone can be referred to as a monkey because of their skin colour."
Dominique Sopo, president of the international NGO SOS Racisme,told RFIthe organisation had filed a complaint with Arcom over the CNews broadcast.
"We are seeing increasingly open expressions of racism. This comparison to a monkey, this talk of dominant males and primitive tribes it all ultimately reduces people... to old racist stereotypes."
Government response
In another incident on CNews on 28 March, essayist Michel Onfray accused Bagayoko of adopting the attitude of a "dominant male by calling for "allegiance" after his election. "That's very tribal," he said, drawing criticism from LFI as well as the Socialist Party.
Meanwhile, Tugdual Denis, editor of the far-right magazineValeurs Actuelles, claimed in a television interview on channel BFMTV on 17 March that Bagayoko was supported by drug dealers, repeating rumours that had circulated during the election campaign.
Whose pocket are you in?Bagayoko responded.Theres an organised cabal [that] fits with who I am: Bally Bagayoko, a child of immigration. So of course they say I must be linked to drug traffickers.
Bagayoko has publicly called out the governments failure to condemn the racist comments about him made on CNews.
While President Emmanuel Macron told a ministerial council that there can be "no sedition in the communes of the Republic", referring to attacks on incoming mayors by leftists, until this week there had been no condemnation of the attacks against Bagayoko.
On Monday,Culture Minister Catherine Pgard, in aninterview on France Inter, criticised the vile, unacceptable attacks on the new mayor, while Interior Minister Laurent Nuez, speaking on radio networkRTLon the same day, called the attacks despicable and said he was deeply shocked by the remarks.
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Disarming the police
Bagayoko has also faced backlash for his campaign promise to gradually disarm Saint-Denis' 160-member municipal police force a move welcomed by those who see police overreach as an issue.
He said the city would begin a gradual "process of disarming" the police, starting with LBD rubber bullet launchers, whose ammunition stocks he said would not be renewed.
"We will review the entirety of the weapons of the local police. This will be done in consultation with police leadership, staff and city residents, so that we can have a local police that is able to act," hetold France Tlvisions.
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The announcement drew the ire of the far right, particularly after reports of police officers putting in transfer requests.
In a social media post, Eric Ciotti, the newly elected far-right mayor of Nice,offered to take inany officers who felt threatened" by Bagayoko's decision.
The president of the far-right National Rally party, Jordan Bardella,saidthat towns run by his party would be sanctuaries for any local police officer who wishes to work on security and be supported and respected.
Bagayoko has denied reports of a wave of transfer requests, calling them exaggerated.
'Purging' city hall
Bagayoko has also come under fire from the national government after comments he made about municipal workers and their political allegiances.
In aninterview with CNewslast week, he said those who "are not aligned with the political project will, of course, leave", clarifying that he would not dismiss them but rather that they would leave on their own, through natural staff turnover.
This is not something new, he said.
Critics accused Bagayoko of seeking to purge city hall of those who did not support his agenda, and he received a letter from the Minister for Public Action and Accounts, David Amiel, who warned him against sidelining employees for political reasons.
Any decision "to sideline a public worker for political reasons would be tarnished by illegality and could be suspended by an administrative judge, he said, adding that any such move could amount to "moral harassment or even a criminal offence.
Bagayoko has announced he will hold a rally on Saturday against racism and discrimination.
Originally published on RFI
