In Paris Without Papers, and Seeking Visibility

This article can be found here.

October 10, 2009

The US isn't the only nation with immigration high on the political agenda, with thousands of African, Turks, Pakistanis, and Chinese inhabiting the camps in the outskirts of Paris. But, unlike the immigrants of America that try to keep their presence concealed, these immigrants march and protest for citizenship on a regular basis, disregarding the risk of deportation. The main reason for this difference lies in the fact that the Parisian police do not do regular checks in common immigrant settlements and perform subsequent deportations like they used to do in America. Event under President Obama's recent measures, deportations and direct attacks on common immigrant sites are also becoming less regular. In Paris, though, one or two residency permits are cranked out every day at a consistent rate, awarding 150,000 immigrants citizenship yearly, the second highest in Europe. Some believe that it is actually the prevalence of these immigrants that keeps them safe from government deportation, since common national opinion on the subject would lead to nation-wide resentment if this were to occur.