French urban riots

The events of 1981 in the city of the Minguettes to Vénissieux, always in the suburbs Lyon is born, know the first press coverage of great width. Gaston Defferre, then Minister of Interior Department, recommends a firm police answer.

In March 1983, in Minguettes, of new confrontations take place with the police force.

Years 1990

After death the October 6th 1990 of the passenger of a motor bike which had overturned with height of a stopping of police force, new riots burst with Vaulx-in-Vellum. Confrontations take place with the police force, of the fires are started and the shopping mall is plundered. The media immediately make the bringing together with the events of 1981, and note the “problem of the suburbs”.

Since the beginning of the years 1990, the rap French is a growing success, by denouncing the social situation and by describing the life with the daily newspaper in the cities, and one supposed racism of the French population and police force, more generally. Thus in 1998, the group of rap NTM writes in “ Odeurs of soufre' ”: “… what does one await for foutre fire? Just to be a little more numerous…” and shows the government of passivity vis-a-vis the problems of the suburbs.

This growing tense atmosphere appears with the cinema in the Hatred of Mathieu Kassovitz in 1995, then in My 6-T goes ace-er of Jean-François Richet in 1997.

In November 1997, in the night of the 2 to the 3, of violent riots burst in the district of Duchère with Lyon   ; four people find death in the events. With Dammarie-the-lily a man is killed by the police force of a ball in the head to have forced a stopping with his friend. The passenger will have left the car after having seen his friend died in front of him and it will be struck until the moment when a motorist will stop the police force. It will be followed from there one week of riots to Dammarie-the-lily. This city will undergo five years later two other burs made on young French of 31 years Moroccan origin and another 20 year old West-Indian. No riots following these businesses but an political organization installation by the inhabitants of Dammarie-the-lily gathering of other networks militant like hullabaloo , the trade union of the magistrature and Act Up . This movement liked neither the ministry for the interior nor to the mayor in M.Mignon place which by mutual agreement decided to do everything to make it fall through while carrying felt sorry for insult or any other reason against the militants of association. Between 1990 and 2000 of violent riots burst with Amiens making several deaths police force or young people of suburbs. Assessment: hundreds of burned automobiles and tens of casualties, the riots have durations several months.

The December 13rd 1998, Habib Ould Mohamed says “Pipo”, dies of the continuations of a bur, at the time of a red-handed of flight of car, in Toulouse. Follow violent ones confrontation of the rioters with CRS.

Years 2000

  • In February 1999, a fireman is seriously wounded with Vénissieux by the explosion of a burnt car;

  • With Montauban a riot bursts in December after the death of a burglar killed by the owner of the places;

  • With Montbeliard, it is the July 12th 2000, after the arrest of a hold-up man of 25 year old bank. Then, the March 3rd 2003, the Urban development zone (ZUP) of Valdegour to Nimes knows it also riots after the death of a burglar who tried to escape the gendarmes. The fire of car became a “tradition” of the new year in certain towns of France since the beginning of the Années 2000, especially in the East (Strasbourg);

  • December 25th 2003, center penitentiary of the Trigger guard, close to Avignon: 18 years a major young person, Sofiane Lamari, is found died hung in his individual cell. Imprisoned for 10 days for a history of collective Rape on a 27 year old young woman in a cellar of a sensitive Quoted of Avignon (Monclar), its family and her friends have refuted the thesis of the Suicide and shout with the murder. The cities of Avignon blaze up, of urban violences burst, 70 CRS are then called in reinforcement.

Whereas in the years 1995, the Immobilier was in a hollow of vagueness, the real estate is at the end of 2005 with its more high level, which deteriorates especially the purchasing power of the smallest resources, although the cities being HLM, the rise is weaker for their inhabitants.

The absence in certain districts of means of development exacerbated the problems of integration at the city of the difficult districts.

At the time of the first ten months of 2005 in France, more 28  000 vehicles were burnt, especially in one of the 750 “significant” urban areas (with special statute).

The June 20th 2005, a child is killed by a ball at the time of a shooting between two rival bands in the City of the 4  000 with Courneuve. Nicolas Sarkozy, Minister of Interior Department, states during its displacement on the spot to want “to clean the city with the Kärcher”. The October 25th, during a displacement with Argenteuil, Nicolas Sarkozy takes again the word “Racaille” pronounced in connection with people who threw projectiles bound for her group, word pronounced by a woman of the district which would have said to him: " Mr Sarkozy, us should be removed from this racaille". What is felt by certain inhabitants of the disadvantaged districts like a humiliating insult, the impression which one compares all the inhabitants to some delinquents and criminals, a provocation and an incentive with the Violence and with the Exclusion. For other inhabitants it is about a promise to take into account their suffering.

In October 2005, following death in a transformer of EDF of two teenagers who had been continued by the police force whereas they wandered on a building site, burst of the riots in the suburbs of towns of all France. This event replaces the Banlieue S in the middle discusses it (see the dedicated article). This event calls in question the Industrial relations policy, the Politique of the city, and the policy of education and Intégration carried out in France.

The November 10th 2005, fourteen days after the beginning of the riots, Nicolas Sarkozy declares in the emission has you to judge “When I say they are hooligans or Racaille S, I persist and I sign”.

During the 3 nights which followed the election of Nicolas Sarkozy to the Presidency of the Republic on May 6th, 2007, 1400 cars were burnt in a certain number of towns of France, destroyed windows of stores, and deteriorated urban furniture.

The November 25th 2007, following the death of two young people having struck a police car, a new blaze of Urban violences is born, with in particular 40 wounded police officers and firemen on November 25th, and at least 60 26.

See too

Related articles

External bonds

  • Sylvie Tissot, “Vaulx-in-Vellum, October 1990: return on a riot” (2002)

  • a selection of texts

Random links:Nirmāṇakāya | Agreement of the lake Meech | AtomAge | The tragic feeling of the life | Dragana Zaric | The Adventure (album) | Montagnes_blanches_(la_Moyen-terre)