What Brought The Black Muslims To France In the First Place?

[Bobbieo]

Do they have immigration permits because of former French colonization policies? Did they enter the country as a labor force?Why are they in France???

[Hello_Kitty]

1. Cheap, exploited labor from what I've been reading.

And kept socially and economically oppressed for generations.

[WinkyDink]

4. They weren't imported, for pity's sake.

They weren't transported on slave ships.
The "pieds noir" emigrated to France because they could.

Hey, it's a beautiful place!

[ovidsen]

2. Labor, and a touch of guilt.

After all, as you pointed out, many of these Muslim/Africans were once living in French ruled colonies.

[Davis_X_Machina]

3. Some Algerians and Tunisians...

...were not economic migrants, but were instead compromised by their cooperation with the French colonial power, and were not welcome in the new independent states of the Maghreb.

Their choice was, as the phrase goes, between the suitcase and the coffin.

We had a similar influx into the US after the fall of Vietnam.

[Chovexani]

5. Algerians are treated like utter shit in France and have been for years

My late uncle was a bit of a bohemian and bicycled around Europe for a long time, he spent some time in France as an art/fashion student. Everywhere he went in the country, people treated him like crap until they found out he was American (he was quite dark-skinned). This was in the 70s.

Europe is only beginning to reap the whirlwind of its imperialist policies of the past, mark my words. So are we for that matter.

[Erika]

7. "So are we for that matter"

Yep. You can't have such a wide income disparity without it bringing violence. It looks like we're headed down that road again.

W is fiddling his thumbs as Chirac did.

[Erika]

6. This is a race/poverty riot - religion has nothing to do with it

The SE Asians living in poverty settings are joining the Blacks in rioting.

From many of the articles I've read, these kids have immigrant parents who came to France to take the jobs that the French weren't willing to do themselves. They feel exploited and discriminated against and they are striking back. Sound familiar?

Contrary to the right wingers beliefs that "these people" are comfortably taken care of, they are not. They have about the same benefits that slave families received.

[GetTheRightVote]

8. Actually they are more like the Illegals we have in the US

LIving off the welfare system of France and my French Co-worker (she is black from Africa) told me today that many of the native citizens are sick of them coming into the country and living off their tax dollars. I am sorry but I can blame them for that, I feel the same about our own home grown version of it.

:kick:

[SoCalDem]

9. Empire has a blowback effect..

For years and years, France plundered their countries and thought nothing of it..and then those countries got their "independence", and the Africans left behind were French citizens too, and followed.. France had jobs, and a life way better than the country they started in..

They had large families, and these angry youngsters are the children/grandchildren ..and they are pissed. they want jobs, they want a decent education..they need an income..and they feel like third class citizens..


Anyone remember the Civil Rights era here?? That's what's ahead for France.