Controversy Erupts Over French Writer’s Claims About Muslim Girls’ Academic Performance

Abnousse Shalmani finds herself at the heart of a controversy. "Do you realize that the majority of Muslim and Maghrebi girls are forced to be less good at school and to hold back from having very good results. These are very serious surveys," she said during her appearance on the "24h Pujadas" program on LCI, to promote her book "Laïcité, j’écris ton nom". The Franco-Iranian journalist will add: "If they succeed too well at school, the big brother or the parents will say: ’But do you think you’re a White or what? Did you think you were French?’". Stunned, the host of the show David Pujadas will specify: "it’s still not the majority". Shalmani retorts: "No, but it’s like what comes back. We have girls who are just average and who hold back from being too good so as not to be rejected". She will assure: "When you live in a closed community, the force of rejection is terrifying. Who wants to live like the plague of his family? Of his street? Of his neighborhood? Of his community?". Present around the table, Bernard Guetta nuances: "You are right to denounce it, but do not generalize it to that extent".

The statements of the Franco-Iranian journalist provoked outraged reactions on social media, particularly on X. "Can we see this ’very serious study’?" asks Mohamed Bouhafsi, a regular on "C à vous" on France 5. And to denounce: "Desperate and so insulting for these millions of parents who have fought to offer the best for their children. In my life, I have only seen parents who have pushed their daughters to give their best at school". Nassira El Moaddem, a journalist at "Arrêts sur images", contradicts her colleague by referring to the results of a survey, called "Educational trajectories of children of immigrants up to the baccalaureate: role of origin and gender" and dated 2019. "It took me about 35 seconds to search," she confides. The figures from this study show that French women of Maghrebi origin have more good results than boys, with a gap of 16 points between the two sexes, reports Pure médias.

Politicians did not fail to react to Shalmani’s remarks. "The degree of unabashed Islamophobia reached at prime time becomes a national shame. My parents have constantly pushed me towards excellence, to the point of proudly celebrating a simple baccalaureate with a party. Leave the Muslims of this country alone!" fumes with anger on X Sabrina Sebaihi, deputy of Europe Ecologie - Les Verts. Her colleague from La France Insoumise (LFI) Antoine Léaument also pointed to the "crass racism on a television set".