Riots in Paris suburbs

[lefutur]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/france/story/0,11882,1608024,00.html

There has been a week of violence in the suburbs of Paris that seems to have been set off by the accidental deaths of 2 African immigrant youths who were electrocuted after hiding in a dangerous area believing that they were being chased by the French police.

France is no different than other industrialized countries that struggle with complex immigration issues and discrimination amoung its poorer and minority citizens. I hope the government will take this opportunity to address the issue of poverty in the parisian 'ghettos' and take action in a positive manner.

Many french footballers, like Theirry Henry, are from the Parisian 'banlieu' and should speak up about this.

[gaijin]

The minister of social cohesion, Jean-Louis Borloo, said the government had to react "firmly" but added that France must also acknowledge its failure to deal with anger simmering in poor suburbs for decades.

"We cannot hide the truth: that for 30 years we have not done enough," he told France-2 television.


Its a shame they did not learn anything from the early 90's...

[Nanbawan]

Its a shame they did not learn anything from the early 90's...

And this is why the media seem stunned yet those bursts are quite predictable, even if sparks are also fueled by petty criminals. Everybody "responsible" in this country is still managing the society in short-term perspective, the ghettoisation of suburbs is not not exactly part of a plan, but rather the absolute lack of it.

[gaijin]

And this is why the media seem stunned yet those bursts are quite predictable, even if sparks are also fueled by petty criminals. Everybody "responsible" in this country is still managing the society in short-term perspective, the ghettoisation of suburbs is not not exactly part of a plan, but rather the absolute lack of it.
Of course it is, it was only a few years ago that there was a Mosque firebombed in Clichy-sous-Bois. And there has been numerous incidents since, that get a little bit of writing in the daily newspapers in Paris.

These problems are the result of decades and decades of neglect by the government, who seem happy to either sweep everything under the carpet and hope it dies down or pacify the situation by throwing money and/or the right wing police at it.

Obiviously its going to take years to eradicate the years and years of trouble and social and moral decline in those areas. It was only a matter of time, before the fuse was lit in the powder keg of that area. And at the minute, a spark is very easy to generate.

[lefutur]

Anybody who hasnt seen the french film "La Haine" I highly recommend it. Its very relevant to this topic and a great flick to boot!

[Papa Bouba Diop]

Banlieue 13 also le futur.

[NachoNation]

This thread could be applicable in many places. Many of the posts I've read, sound like something straight out of the United States. It is newer to Europe, but it looks like it's the same everywhere.

[Krutch]

Anybody who hasnt seen the french film "La Haine" I highly recommend it. Its very relevant to this topic and a great flick to boot!

Yeah that is a good movie.

[ilv2]

oh boy, studying there next semester doesn't seem so swell anymore. :(

[truillo]

And this is why the media seem stunned yet those bursts are quite predictable, even if sparks are also fueled by petty criminals. Everybody "responsible" in this country is still managing the society in short-term perspective, the ghettoisation of suburbs is not not exactly part of a plan, but rather the absolute lack of it.

Get a job, no matter how menial it is. Educate your kids. Personal responsibility. What's so hard about that? My parents spoke no English when they came over to US. Worked in the bike factory for twenty years to educate us kids. There are many who worked hard and got out of the ghetto like we did. Those people never depended on the government for a hand out. Those who are still in the ghetto wait by the mailbox eveyday for their checks. They will never get out because they are trapped by these "generous" handouts.

[gaijin]

This thread could be applicable in many places. Many of the posts I've read, sound like something straight out of the United States. It is newer to Europe, but it looks like it's the same everywhere.

Paris is not experiencing a new wave of trouble here, in the 1970's, there was massive riots in France then, especially with the whole Algerian independence and ALN trouble that was the main forerunner to it.

Of course, its quite apt that Kassowitz should produce a film that echoes problems from the mid-90's that still holds relevance in this day and age, over a decade later.

:rolleyes:

[gaijin]

Get a job, no matter how menial it is. Educate your kids. Personal responsibility. What's so hard about that? My parents spoke no English when they came over to US. Worked in the bike factory for twenty years to educate us kids. There are many who worked hard and got out of the ghetto like we did. Those people never depended on the government for a hand out. Those who are still in the ghetto wait by the mailbox eveyday for their checks. They will never get out because they are trapped by these "generous" handouts.

Monsieur Sarkozy?

Ah, ça fait plaisir de te voir...

[gaijin]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4405620.stm

[Sachin]

I've been hearing that some trains to CDG have been shut down.... it's just on blog posts, but I was wondering if anyone on the ground has any real information about it.

We're still going in about 3 weeks on the way back from India. I don't anticipate any hassles as we will be close to the very center of Paris.

Sachin

[sl7vk]

Some of these neighborhoods could use a good remodeling anyways.

[Sachin]

I've seen pictures of those neighborhoods. Soviet architects would blush with embarassment.

Sachin

[Pierre-Henri]

Everything was build in the 60', during the economic boom, for the sole purpose of housing cheap workers from our "colonies". When we had no use for them anymore, we simply let them rot here. I don't endorse violence (especially since it's autodestructive in this case), but France has a huge responsability in what is happening today. To get a job when your first name is "Ali" or "Mohamed" is nearly impossible task. Racial tensions exist in USA too, but at least you have black and hispanic politicians and so on. How many Arab congressmen in France ? Zero, nil, naught.

That's a lesson of history : you always pay the price for your mistakes.

[sl7vk]

http://jmgobet.neufblog.com/photos/uncategorized/magritte.jpg

[Pierre-Henri]

We should show THIS to the tourists too, and not only the cathedrals, the Louvres and the canal St-Martin.

[arsenalfreaky]

I don't mean to be naive, but I thought France and other socialist governments in Western Europe were supposed to be more "caring" towards their citizens than democracies, which supposedly don't care for their poor, etc. I'm from the US and this characterization is wrong, but I know that it's propagated in the media. If it were true and socialism is the perfect form of government, then there would be no need to riot.