French Riots: Why integration in France has failed

Joi d’vivre

As riots ravage the streets of Paris and their embers spread the wildfire to other European cities, I am preparing to participate in a conference next week in Brussels to discuss the level of civic engagement among European and American Muslims. This conference was planned several months ago, but it underscores the realization among policy-makers of the problem involving Muslim communities in the West. It also demonstrates that social policies in the West vis-a-vis Muslim communities have failed miserably.

One can talk endlessly about the need for reform of Muslims themselves, and no doubt that is a priority for all of us who are actively engaged on that front. But we receive no assistance from governments other than infrequent meetings and brief exchanges of ideas. This communication gap is leading many Muslims to conclude that policies are driven by racism and will be implemented in spite of us, or even in order to exclude us.

The sense of isolation by Muslims in the West and the perception that their representatives don’t represent them is palpable. It is the same isolation that led to the Watts riots in the 1960s, and erupted again in 1992 after the Rodney King beating. In France, Muslims represent 10% of the population, but with no representation in Parliament, they have been unable to articulate the need to redress their grievances. Sparked by the death, or entrapped murder, of two Algerian immigrants, instigated by a violent minority, denounced by the majority, the French riots provide us a glimpse into the anger and frustration of the masses.

It took more than ten days for President Jacques Chirac to even comment on the disturbance. Then, within 24 hours of Chirac’s statement, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announced the creation of an anti-discrimination agency, which his government hopes will reduce the rising rate of unemployment (now around 50%) in the ghettos, comprised mainly of Algerian immigrants, and is intended to stem racism against African communities in France. The formation of this agency is a primitive form of programs initiated by the civil rights movement in US cities after the riots in the 1960s.

The French immigrant community is not “immigrant” any more. The young men and women charging through the streets of 200 French cities were born and raised in France, yet they are treated as aliens. They live in ethnic enclaves, and they have been disenfranchised. One of the lessons gained from riots in our nation’s past is the demand for reconciliation between two separate societies divided by race and culture.

If you replace Algerian immigrants in France with Asian or other African communities, and apply the same conditions, the results would be the same. It is time to move away from the paradigm that this is a problem with religion and look instead to what governments do to their people. If they reject them, they will be rejected by them, violently and non-violently.

One of the measures France took after 9/11 and 7/7 was to replace existing religious leaders with government-appointed religious leaders. This initiative was undertaken for two main reasons: 1) the failure of the French Muslim leadership to articulate a platform for integration into French culture; and 2) the need to counter extremist ideologies. However, these government-appointed religious leaders are out of touch with the grassroots sentiments. While such overt substitutions of religious leadership have not taken place in the U.S., a more insidious government policing method seems to have taken root. Political favoritism is offered to religious leaders who support the status quo policies of the government. What results is Capitol Hill’s operational definition for a “moderate.” Anyone who doesn’t fall in line doesn’t get access.

We can expect al-Qaeda and other extremist groups to exploit this disturbance and fuel the fire of fanaticism. This predictable step underscores the need for full integration of Muslim minorities into Western societies. Integration means full acceptance of different attire, or put another way, refraining from social and political litmus tests on Muslim communities before they are accepted by the political leadership in the West.

Is the United States better off than Europe with respect to treatment of Muslim minorities? Yes. Is there a sense of isolation and frustration among Muslim Americans? Yes. The only way to reconcile is to empower grassroots organizations and stem feelings of despair. The talk shows can blabber their trash about religious conflicts, but the bottom line is socio-economic justice and political representation. Countering anti-Muslim rhetoric and bias are now a concern for all Americans. For the Brussels conference, I hope to offer a voice for pursuing American ideals of integration and pluralism, and for a Western Muslim identity, as the only legitimate means of countering extremism.

Salam Al-Marayati is the executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council.