L'intégration sous condition : valeurs non négociables et égalité des sexes

Abstract

For a number of years, integration contracts have been implemented in Europe and in North America. With a view to challenging multiculturalism, the goal of these contracts is to ensure that migrants comply, even subscribe, to the non-negotiable values of the host societies. This article addresses the issue of the accommodation and integration contract tried out in France in 2003 and made mandatory in 2007, with a particular focus on the public discussions surrounding its creation as well as its most recent tinkering. After clarifying the political background to its implementation and presenting the clause itself, the author demonstrates how the matter of women constitutes one of the specific issues addressed in the contract. Indeed, the public discussions of the integration contract articulate the reference to non-negotiable values of the Republic while giving central importance to gender equality. This value refers to a universal equality standard, in which, however, equality of the sexes is translated as a cultural norm specific to the French nation. This translation is reinforced by the quasi-systematic reference to polygamy, genital mutilation, forced marriages, and the burqa. The author stresses the limitations of such a usage of the “women's cause”—it may play a significant role in somewhat stigmatizing migrants and may sometimes be used to justify increasingly restrictive immigration policies.