Shah M. Nister J. Kabir
Abstract:
The relationships between race, religion and poverty have created a dangerous equation in France, and their destabilising effects are visible in current French society. Based on an analysis of news coverage, however, this study suggests that the newspaper, The Press downplayed a major social crisis facing Muslim minorities by focusing on an imaginary issue, Islamism, in the context of suburban rioting in France. This study also recognises that The Press proposed a two-dimensional framework: racial discrimination and Islamism. The Islamism framework, however, most of the times overlapped the racial framework and the Muslim community was linked with fundamentalism and extremism. Besides this, the social position of the people involved in the suburban protest was devalued through narratives suggesting that they were anti-social.
Keywords: Muslims, Islamism, riots, France