a caveat on French ZUSs

Submitted by daniel (France), Nov 24, 2006 at 04:20

I happen to walk through one of the zones on the list (Pte de St Ouen-Pte de Clichy, Paris 17) every day on my way to work. There's a park on rue Navier where I take my kids now and then. I must confess that without this convenient index, I would not have realized that it was a "zone sensible". I can say the same of several other areas on the list that I'm familiar with.

My own experience is of course not necessarily representative as I certainly do not make a habit of frequenting the dodgiest neighborhoods in France, and I don't doubt for a minute that some of the areas on this list are in fact genuine no-go zones as was eloquently demonstrated in last year's riots. In some cases these may well represent an embryonic Dar al-Islam as Dr. Pipes indicates.

To classify all 751 zones on the list as no-go areas, or to equate whichever no-go areas do indeed exist with Dar al-Islam is, however, a simplification which will only invite criticism and bring grist to the mill of those politically correct Panglossian pundits who deny any possible connection between Islam and Europe's social ills. I am not a sociologist, but a more accurate assessment would, it seems, acknowledge that:

1/ quite a few immigrants of so-called "muslim" origin who populate many of these areas are not necessarily practising muslims, can they therefore be considered under "muslim rule"? (between "radicals", "moderates", "sympathizers", and non-practising immigrants identified nonetheless as "muslims", I must honestly admit I don't actually know whether a satisfactory answer to this question can be formulated).

2/ the presence of large "muslim" minorities or even majorities in poverty and crime ridden urban zones is probably a real difference between the slums of Europe and those of the United States which deserves analysis

3/ as in the United States, no-go urban zones are the place where local drug lords and crime rings rule. To note that connections may exist between organized crime and Islamists would only be stating the obvious. Whether or not this is true of all crime rings in all slums in France remains to be seen, and is essential to determining if, where, and to what extent areas of "muslim rule" identifiable as Dar al-Islam exist in France.

One other factor which must be taken into account is the fact that having its very own "Zone Urbaine Sensible" is an advantage for any municipality desirous of obtaining extra government funding for various social projects, hence the extraordinary proliferation of these zones even in some unexpected places.

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