French riots are a cry for real social change

matthew lynn

The streets are engulfed in flames. Cars are set alight. Curfews are being imposed. The images comin...

The streets are engulfed in flames. Cars are set alight. Curfews are being imposed. The images coming out of France are disturbing. The rioting that has swept through immigrant communities in recent weeks is mainly being ascribed to a failure by France to integrate its ethnic minorities. But that isn't the whole story. Underlying the rioting is unemployment, which afflicts least advantaged members of the community the most. France is now paying the price for a stagnant economy that fails to create jobs, an inability to assimilate mostly North African migrants, and an expensive social saf...