Just across the channel, the French (in the words of Charlton Heston: "damn them! Damn them all to hell!"
) DCRG (general intelligence directorate) recently completed a study which could be termed 'empirical': "
the study does not have scientific value and does not rest on indispitutable statistics" they caution.
The study aimed to evaluate "civic fallback" (decay of social fabric) in various communities, using eight criteria:
number of immigrant families
associative fabric in the community
ethnic businesses
multiplication of Muslim places of worship
prevalence of Oriental or religious dress
anti-semitic and anti-occidental graffiti
presence in schools of non-French speaking first wave immigrants
difficulty in upholding French language and customs.
If a given neighborhood/district fits within several of those criteria, DCRG considers it to exhibit signs of civic fallback or retreat. The study aims to identify a trend, and points at the radicalization of Islamic behaviors and practices in schools.
It is an influence which is increasing in over 200 neighborhoods surveyed.
Particularly at risk are young girls originating from the Maghreb who follow a European lifestyle and are subjected to verbal and physical abuse (sometimes resulting in injury or death).
As much as the integration processes continue throughout the country, they are countered by radical Imams.
The government's response, particularly the interior ministry (Dominique de Villepin. Yeah, that guy again), has been to 'cooperate' (read: pressure) with the CFCM (French Council of Muslim Religion) to form Imams respectful of the secularity of the French republic and society as well as fight racism.
They've also spent no time deporting those Imams considered to be 'enemies of the State'.
But the media in particular and courts have been putting the brakes to those initiatives.
