It all began after the Second World War, when gradually all the former French colonies gained independence, and France itself was experiencing an unprecedented economic boom. There was a lot of work, but there were not enough people, so it was decided to turn to the Maghreb countries for additional labor. That is how the so-called travailleurs-migrant appeared in France, better known to us by the German name gastarbeiter.
These were young men who came for legal earnings at the invitation of the host country. They worked, earned money and... remained in France. What happened to them here was what sociologists would later call the “myth of return” – an immigrant arrives with the firm intention of returning, earns money, and the desire to return gradually transforms from a plan into a dream that the immigrant continues to talk about, but which is no longer destined to come true.
Meanwhile, the French authorities were making one of their main mistakes – they told French society that Maghreb immigrants were temporary labor, whose stay was limited by the term of the concluded contract. And it was not even that almost no one left, but that French society was not psychologically ready to accept them. And the authorities themselves were not ready for the fact that migration flows cannot be reversed.
Following the labor migration, halted by the oil crises of the 70s, came a wave of “family reunification” – wives, mothers, sisters, and children came to the young men. Moreover, they came to the same high-rise dormitories that became a symbol of French immigration, the famous HLM (habitation a loyer modere – housing at moderate rent). There, on the outskirts of the city, in areas with poorly developed infrastructure, they lived (usually 8-12 people per room). Gradually they were joined by native French from lower social strata, attracted by cheap housing. A policy that was correct in essence, aimed at providing low-income families with affordable housing, ultimately led to the “ghettoization” of the Muslim community. This is how “another France” began to emerge. As a good friend of mine says: “We have been to Paris, a beautiful Arab city.”
The “glorious” 80s arrived – a time of global flourishing and the rise of Islamism. As a result of the unstable situation in third-world countries, political refugees flock to France – from Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, etc. And among them are Islamists persecuted by the secular governments of their countries. Thus, in Arab suburbs and neighborhoods, along with numerous mosques, illegal prayer rooms begin to appear, often in the same worker dormitories. Meanwhile, illegal migration is also gaining momentum. Illegals are attracted not so much by earnings as by the opportunity to enjoy high social benefits in France.
And by the end of the 80s and beginning of the 90s, the second and third generations of immigrants reach maturity. These are the children and grandchildren of those workers who came after the war. But these are already different people – beurs (French slang, from the word arabe). Their parents, who had escaped poverty, considered themselves worthy people. The children no longer saw the poor neighborhoods of Arab cities, but they know how the French live, and therefore despised their parents for their “low start.” At the same time, the traditional Arab family was disintegrating. In immigrant families, the father often could not maintain his authority: he might not have a job, he spoke French worse than his children, wore Arab clothing that embarrassed his offspring dressed in jeans. As a result, in most immigrant families there was a loss of control over children.
These children, now adults, are neither French nor Maghrebis – they are French of Maghreb origin. They do not know their historical homeland and often speak Arabic poorly. All they got from their ancestors is their appearance and Islam. They also hardly know France; for them France is their neighborhood, and they also speak French poorly, with a strong Arab accent. Despite the fact that they attended the same secular schools, listened to the same music, and grew up in a neighboring neighborhood, French society constantly emphasizes their difference, which is also confirmed by their failures in education and career. Feeling that France does not accept them, they begin to idealize the country of their ancestors, emphasizing the only connecting link that exists between them – Islam.
Religion here is no longer just religion, and skin color is not just skin color. French society is one of the most closed societies in the world; in it, transition from one social group to another is very difficult. Inside it, French people communicate with French people, and immigrants with immigrants. An Arab or African name is an obstacle to finding a job and renting housing.
Before my eyes, Rita, a Moroccan woman, granddaughter of one of the fighters for Morocco's independence, who came to study at the Sorbonne, tried in vain to rent an apartment. Every time she gave her last name, the apartment turned out to have already been rented.
A similar and even more difficult situation exists with black people from Africa. They continue to suffer more than others from unemployment, acts of racism and professional discrimination, achieve less success in studies and commit more crimes. For immigrant youth, religion is a consolation, compensation for social inferiority, and in many cases also a way to “take revenge” for their failures.
France has long been trying to solve the problem of its suburbs. Unfortunately, all measures only led to strengthening their exclusion – their homogeneity was too great and they differed too much from the rest of the urban neighborhoods. In a modern "problematic" or, as the French say, "sensitive" suburb of a large industrial city, very similar families live: the same type of work for fathers (construction, industry, cleaning), the same housing (apartment in a multi-story building), the same problems (unemployment, inability to give children an education, lack of money), high dependence on social benefits, the same goals (social success), the same religion (Islam) and... the same result.
One of France's biggest failures was the integration policy, or the "city policy." It was aimed at improving housing and social conditions, as well as creating conditions for the successful inclusion of immigrant children living in disadvantaged neighborhoods in the educational process. However, twenty years after the launch of this program, the authorities were forced to admit that it did not bring results. The disadvantaged neighborhoods remained the same, they still house immigrant families and their children. The unemployment rate among residents of these neighborhoods is three times higher than among young French people of the same age, and the level of violence is also higher.
The failure of integration was due to a number of reasons. Its main mistakes were that it solved the tasks of meeting the minimum needs of immigrants: shelter, food, primary education. But this is not enough to succeed in modern French society, especially since "success" is one of the key elements of integration. For example, in the field of education, the "city policy" provided for shifting the emphasis in the school process towards the knowledge necessary for integration. This led to a decrease in the general level of education, and therefore to the inability to subsequently compete with native French people in the labor market. As a result, immigrant parents said that the system does everything to ensure that the children of workers become only workers.
Another delicate point was that the majority of immigrants profess Islam, which has a developed system of religious socialization that is still passed from generation to generation and affects all aspects of life (special behavior style, observed traditions, etc.). For the French state, however, the integration process was absolutely secular, and as a result the word "integration" came to mean "assimilation," that is, the renunciation of national cultural and religious characteristics, which is almost impossible for a devout Muslim.
Also, a role was played by the fact that there is no experience of coexistence between the two cultures – after all, European society does not question the integration of a devout Jew or Christian, since this is taken for granted. And on the contrary, there is an experience of constant historical confrontation, which leads to the fact that a Muslim who observes Ramadan is treated with suspicion.
But in reality, integration has nothing to do with faith, since it comes down to respect for the laws of the French Republic, including its secular nature, which does not depend on religious beliefs. The main range of problems in this area comes down to restricting the display of religious beliefs in public places, such as schools, universities, during work. However, the results can be directly opposite: after the famous "headscarf affair," more and more young men began to grow beards, and more and more girls began to wear traditional Muslim headscarves...
In the mid-90s, a series of terrorist attacks organized by Algerian Islamists swept across France. Since then, the country has lived ten peaceful years. Although the above-described problems were known for a long time, the authorities simply turned a blind eye to what was happening in the immigrant neighborhoods, buying temporary social peace with this. However, the crime rate in the newly formed "ghettos" soon began to go through the roof, and in response the authorities began to pursue a policy of "zero tolerance," which put an end to this fragile stability...
Returning to the beginning, it should be noted that everyone is to blame in the current situation. Now France, besides the short-term task of relieving tension, faces another, more difficult one that it once failed to solve: the creation of a multicultural society based on respect for other cultures, in which everyone will be given equally good conditions for social and professional growth, and discrimination will be exclusively positive. Although this may look like a utopia, one must at least strive for it. The motto of three Bs (blanc, black, beur – white, black, Arab) is more relevant to France than ever.
Finally, I will tell a true story. During a scientific internship, a girl from the Paris suburb of Beauvais lived with me in the dormitory. Stephanie came to Paris to do an internship that became mandatory in all graduating classes of school. When she started to speak, I didn't understand anything, the French understood a little – Stephanie spoke in argot. The dormitory director noted that Stephanie was making progress: she spoke better, began to wear sportswear less often and yell at people less. Over six months in Paris, Stephanie changed several jobs – she was kicked out everywhere for rudeness and argotisms. But the dormitory director tried to help, looked for new places for her. After another dismissal, Stephanie withdrew into herself: she lay in front of the TV in the hall all day, refused to go to interviews because, in her opinion, they humiliate her there, then dropped out of school and returned to her suburb with a feeling of hatred towards the city bourgeoisie. I don't know what happened to her next, but a year ago, when I returned home, I told all my acquaintances: "France is sitting on a powder keg." Unfortunately, someone threw a match...
Yulia NETESOVA.
IA Rosbalt