Opinion: Jihadism - ideological venom
They have been shut out of society and have no prospects. They can no longer hope for a better, carefree life. Most politicians are not interested in their fates; they have been abandoned and dismissed as a negligible force. Supported by meager social programs, they can only take each day as it comes.
Impoverished and embittered, they are disappointed with a state whose representatives no longer stand for them, but instead give them the feeling they are being mocked. An angry irritability has crept into their lives and it is ready to flare up at any moment. Radicalization becomes an option; sooner or later, you'll hear about one of these people.
French social geographer Christophe Guilluy has outlined gloomy scenes in his book "La France peripherique" (Peripheral France). There, he describes the country's geographical fringes, which are also social borders. If you want to understand the full extent of the French crisis, then you have to look at the deindustrialized regions in the north and the south of the country. The majority of people who have lost out to globalization live in these areas.
Socially overlooked
Guilluy's book caused quite a stir in France because he has diverted attention from the banlieues. Most people became aware of the neglected suburbs of major French cities at the latest when ongoing riots in the autumn of 2005 came to be known as the heart of French troubles. Guilluy says this is wrong. Apparently, there are more success and advancement stories than generally believed. People certainly do not spend their lives there. Many use them as a stepping stone before they - often successfully - move to a better neighborhood.
However, many people have been radicalized in the periphery. Many of them have little chance of finding a job. Their anger finds a worrisome form of expression: They either do not vote at all or they vote for the right-wing Front National.
Hate culture at your doorstep
Until now, there is one thing these people have not done: They have not attacked their fellow citizens. They behave in a civilized manner, unlike the French jihadists. And that shows that one must exercise caution when using sociological models to explain the violence. Poverty and lack of prospects do play a role, but they are not the only factors. The French-Iranian sociologist Farhad Khosrokhavar has described other elements of radicalization: search for meaning, adventure, the mere lust for violence or even killing, and of course, massive indoctrination.
From what is known so far, nearly all French jihadists live in a bizarre dream world. They are isolated and live among like-minded others who share the distorted world view created by radical preachers and the Internet. The images they see reveal a fragmented world with an oppressively one-sided perspective. Then, simple messages veiled in an aura of holiness are tailored for those who are not capable of understanding or not willing to understand arguments of greater complexity.
The philosopher Christian Godin quotes lyrics from French rappers of Northern African origin. "Blow them away the next chance you get, ignore them, the pigs that stand for order in France," are lyrics in one song. "We are here and we will throw you all out, Francais de souche (the ethnic French)," can be heard in another.
Freedom or art? Freedom of religion?
Words like that have a lasting effect. People will soon have to acknowledge hate speech like that. But no one should be expected to believe that freedom of art or religion is being attacked. Hate speech is neither religion nor art. It just pretends to be.