Paris’ 19th Arrondissement, one of the cities poorest and most racially diverse districts, is suffering from increases in gang violence this month, but locals are questioning how much race and religion are instigating attacks.    Even many social workers argue that the fighting is over turf and heightened by class tensions as the neighborhood becomes more gentrified.   While perhaps race and religion are not the sole driving forces, much of the violence has occurred between Muslim youths of North African decent and Jewish teenagers.

Morad Chahrine, who directs the J2P social and cultural center, explains:

‘It’s less about anti-Semitism than fights among gangs of youths, who create alliances of one district against another,’ Mr. Chahrine said, noting the influence of American movies on the styles and habits of the gangs. ‘This idea of identity of territory starts with economic reasons. This is the youngest and poorest arrondissement in Paris, with a lot of unemployment, and that explains a lot.’- NY Times

Great to hear our culture serves as such an excellent role model to the kids of Paris.   It’s a terribly upsetting situation, particularly when you consider that the motivation for the violence begins with self-hatred:

Mouada Abdelali, an artist who worked on youth projects, said that he had seen local French youths repeatedly stigmatised for their skin colour or immigrant descent. “One teenager said to me: “I hate everyone even myself”. How do you deal with that?” - Guardian UK

Finding a solution to this turmoil will require a comprehensive approach to address the variety of contributing factors.
takepart by visiting the Youth Violence Prevention Center and make a difference in your neighborhood.