Islamophobic Incidents Rise in France Despite Overall Drop in Racist Acts

A notable fact in this report is the significant drop in racist acts, noted from the figures of the Central Territorial Intelligence Service, a body attached to the national police and the Ministry of the Interior, reports AFP, adding that in France, racist acts decreased by 26% in 2020 compared to the previous year, from nearly 2,000 to less than 1,500. This decline, according to the CNCDH, could partly be linked to the long confinement of last year.

In contrast, while anti-Semitic acts have declined, the document indicates that Islamophobic acts are the only ones on the rise, with anti-Muslim tags on the walls of mosques, places of worship set on fire or various assaults. A total of 234 Islamophobic acts were committed, the report specifies, stressing that Muslim rights associations do not give credence to it, because it comes from the Ministry of the Interior and the police who avoid talking about Islamophobia.

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Also declining are prejudices, due to a better tolerance of the French towards foreigners, but not necessarily towards Islam and Muslims. Six out of ten people surveyed believe that "Islam is a threat to the identity of France." This is due to the Islamophobic rhetoric broadcast day in and day out on continuous news channels. While 45% of respondents associate Jews with money, a third of those surveyed consider that "the children of immigrants born in France are not really French." And the CNCDH to emphasize "a slow and continuous decline of prejudices in France", due to the progress of tolerance towards minorities, following "the anti-racist norm that has imposed itself in all Western democracies since the end of the Second World War, after the Holocaust."

As for Muslims, the finding is more worrying. 16% of all racist acts recorded by the Ministry of the Interior are considered Islamophobic, compared to 8% in 2019, due to "a favorable context" for this "stigmatization of Muslims", laments the CNCDH, citing the long debate on the law on separatisms.

Finally, the document reports on anti-Asian racism, very little mentioned by the media and on which the Commission lacks precise figures, however affirming "the existence of a particular anti-Asian component at the beginning of the spread of Covid-19 in France", due to a confusion linked to the origin of the coronavirus, in China.