Jewish Political Studies Review
Jewish Political Studies Review 17:3-4 (Fall 2005)
Muslim Intimidation in French Schools
not only Threatens Jews
Manfred Gerstenfeld on
Les territoires perdus de la République:
Antisémitisme, racisme et
sexisme en milieu scolaire
by Emmanuel Brenner
This book's title translates as "The Lost Territories of the (French)
Republic." It refers to the breakdown of law and order in various
domains of French society. This manifests itself, for instance, in the
fear of the police to enter certain areas in and around major cities
throughout the country. These no-go areas are largely populated by
North African immigrants and their descendants. Many are Arabs,
others Berbers.
Brenner (a pseudonym) and his collaborators describe and analyze
this breakdown in one segment of French society: parts of the school
system where anti-Semitism, racism, and sexual discrimination have
appeared and often have not been appropriately dealt with by teachers
and the authorities. The "lost territories" increased further under the
Jospin government consisting of Socialists, Communists, and Greens,
which was defeated in the 2002 elections. Since then, the UMP (Gaullist)
government has been trying to recover part of what has been lost.
This, however, is difficult because the situation has already greatly
deteriorated.
One measure that has been taken is the forbidding of wearing the
Muslim headscarf, as well as Christian and Jewish symbols, in the
schools. However, in schools with large Muslim majorities other groups
have sometimes already been so intimidated that they try to hide their
identity.
In addition to three essays, the book contains testimonies by
teachers describing many cases of extreme, mainly Muslim, racism.
The first edition, which was published in 2002, dealt with the situation
under the left-wing government. The second edition also contains
additional testimonies. An English extract dealing with anti-Semitism
in French schools has been published under Brenner's real name -
Georges Bensoussan, a well-known Jewish historian who has also
written on the Shoah.1
Breaking a Taboo
When the book first came out, it helped break a major taboo and
started to undermine many prevailing French myths. The politically
correct view was that only white people can be racists, whereas
Muslims and blacks are victims. This postcolonial mindset has been
particularly strong in France. The disadvantage of members of these
communities manifests itself nowadays in their relatively high unemployment
in France. Brenner does not deny that some of the Muslims
are social victims, but points out that this does not place
them beyond the law, particularly when their acts have a pogromlike
character.
The book shows that in the Muslim community there are many
cases of extreme racism that democratic society, if it functions properly,
should not tolerate. Currently one of the most outspoken systematic
promoters of anti-Semitism in France is a black comedian named
Dieudonné. In an appearance on state-owned television, he dressed
up as an Orthodox Jew and made the Hitler salute. He now repeats
this in appearances for thousands of spectators.
Among many in the Muslim community there are also other
extreme antidemocratic attitudes, such as the religious intimidation
of other Muslims and in particular, women. It is still commonly
believed that radicals, also called Islamists, account for at most
about 5 percent of European Muslims. Brenner's book illustrates,
however, that the resulting problems are more widespread. This
became evident during the first elections for the representative body
of the French Muslim community, the French Council for the Muslim
Religion (CFCM). The Union of Islamic Organizations in
France (UOIF), which is close to the radical Muslim Brotherhood,
came out as the largest faction.
Disgust for French Society
The testimonies indicate the serious plight of French democracy.
Many teachers close their eyes to the violence, intimidation, and
racism. Others describe the perpetrators as "hooligans" or "hoodlums,"
in denial of the fact that there are elements in the French
Muslim community as well as foreign television stations that systematically
incite against others. Other teachers try to maintain "social
peace" by appeasing the bullies and withholding sympathy from
their victims.
The schools' attitudes broadly reflect those of the left-wing government
and the previous political position of President Jacques Chirac.
During three years of major anti-Semitic incidents, he denied that
there was anti-Semitism in France. Only after yet another arson attempt
against a Jewish institution in November 2003 did Chirac decide
to change his stance.
The cases described are not limited to Jewish victims. Some Christian
pupils are so intimidated by the Muslim majority in their classes
that they have considered converting to Islam. Teachers are harassed
as well. Some Muslim pupils expressed their joy about 11 September,
and Bin Laden is a hero to them. It would be a mistake to think that
the hatred focuses exclusively on Jews and Americans; the Muslims'
main disgust is for the French and French society.
Beyond the many stories of violence, threats, insults, and other
harassment, there are other major problems in the schools. The
testimonies mention teacher-arsonists who introduce politicized
views of the Middle East conflict. This should not be too surprising.
Brenner notes that in January 2002 when the major anti-Semitic
eruption in France had already been going on for well over a year,
Socialist Foreign Minister Hubert Védrine implied understanding
for the Muslim violence against Jews stating: "One doesn't necessarily
have to be shocked that young Frenchmen of immigrant origins
have compassion for the Palestinians and are extremely excited seeing
what is happening."
Fireman and Arsonist
The current French government can best be described as pursuing a
fireman-arsonist policy. Since President Charles De Gaulle adopted
pro-Arab positions after the Six Day War, French governments have
carried out many discriminatory acts against Israel. They have also
persuaded other European countries to support highly biased anti-
Israeli resolutions at the United Nations. While this continues unabated,
the French government simultaneously fights - with insufficient resources - against anti-Semitism. Many experts consider that
the two approaches are contradictory and incompatible.
In recent years, French Jewish schools have seen an influx of Jewish
pupils who want to escape the threats in the public schools with their
many North African pupils. The same applies to Jewish teachers. The
book mentions some examples of pupils who have left their schools
after extreme harassment by Muslims. Although the risk of a Jew
being physically attacked in France is tens of times larger than for a
Muslim, the myth persists that domestic Islamophobia is more dangerous
than anti-Semitism.
Had this book been published in English, its international impact
would have been much larger because it exposes in such great detail
the smokescreen the French authorities have used for such a long time
to conceal the anti-Semitism. In France, Brenner's work had some
impact. Observers say this could not have been achieved had the lead
author used his own Jewish-sounding name rather than an uncommon
pseudonym.
* * *
Notes
1. Georges Bensoussan, "Antisemitism in French Schools: Turmoil of a Republic,"
Analysis of Current Trends in Anti-Semitism, No. 24 (Jerusalem: Hebrew
University, 2004), 46 pp.
The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect
those of the Board of Fellows of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.
The above book review appears in the Fall 2005 issue of the Jewish Political Studies Review, the first and only journal dedicated to the study of Jewish political institutions and behavior, Jewish political thought, and Jewish public affairs.
Published by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs (http://www.jcpa.org/), the JPSR appears twice a year in the form of two double issues, either of a general nature or thematic, with contributors including outstanding scholars from the United States, Israel, and abroad. The hard copy of the Spring 2005 issue will be available in the coming weeks."
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