Is racism on the rise?

A poll by SOS Racisme has found that the number of French agreeing with racial stereotypes and admitting racism has risen since last year. More than 1,000 people were interviewed with 27,6% agreeing that Arabs are more likely to commit crimes than others – compared to 12% last year. 49% agreed that foreigners were better at exploiting the benefits system. Do the results surprise the French?

Magalie Bernard, 30, waitress

I do not think people are becoming more racist.

Anyone at some point may make an isolated racist comment but in reality, most people will have a friend who is Muslim or Jewish.

Even generally tolerant people may sometimes react strongly because of the group effect. The economy has meant people have less money and some are worried about their buying power. In the political sphere it seems that some politicians purposefully maintain this bad climate in order to divide people further. In the area where I live, there are a lot of people from North Africa and Cape Verde and other ethnic minorities and everyone is very friendly. I have no problems there at all but from time to time I hear racist comments and I feel sorry for the people who feel that way. They are simply shutting themselves off from other cultures.

François Lanteri, 25, special needs assistant
The French are not becoming more racist. As far as new generations are concerned, there is a lot of prevention which has started to bear fruit. Racism originates in ignorance and in this economic context, people who do not have a grasp on what is happening might look for culprits and they do not go looking very far – they just pick the first person with a different skin colour and come down on them. All the same, I think there has been some progress.

The mentality in some rural areas remains intolerant. Coming from the neighbouring village makes you a foreigner, so having a different skin colour is a whole different planet.

Philippe Le Bon, 52, insurance executive
I do not think French people are becoming more racist. I think that in most work environments, ethnic diversity has started being taken into account more.

Within most companies, everything is done to ensure young people are integrated whatever their origins. I am part of a company which congratulates itself on the integration of a large number of workers who come from deprived areas.

Education and employment are the basis of integration and one cannot deny that in the troubled suburbs, not everyone has the opportunity to find work. Everyone has to make an effort, the employer as well as the job seeker.

Ines Khelifi, 17, high school student
I feel the French are certainly becoming more racist and I believe it all started with the 2001 World Trade Centre attacks. From that moment in time, a lot of people have become prejudiced against Islam and everyone who is a Muslim. I hear a lot of talk about integration but I do not see anything being done to integrate us. I also think racism starts younger and younger. I am a high school student and in my classroom, a lot of students are open about being racist.

I have heard about fights between students prompted by their different origins and even of one occasion when a group of students sang the Marseillaise in public to make a point. But I think it is usually their parents who have brought them up in this way. When parents are not racist, I don’t think children become racist.