Is There a School to Prison Pipeline? The Case of France

Cheryl Lynn Duckworth

doi:10.20355/c5p889

Abstract

In the wake of the January 2015 attacks on Charlie Hebdo, (a satirical newspaper in Paris), there was much commentary on free speech, security, intelligence and the marginalization and dispossession of some young Muslim immigrants (and children of immigrants). Analysis has seemed, reasonably, to focus on economic opportunities, as well as addressing some identity and cultural issues, such as whether or not female Muslims should be allowed to wear a headscarf. The media reported that the two young men who seem to have led the attack on Charlie Hebdo had dropped out from school, going on to work low-wage jobs such as pizza delivery. Little of the news coverage details their education beyond that they were remembered as average Parisian boys, as media coverage focused of course on live breaking events, with less in-depth analysis of the social, economic and political factors driving the broader conflict between European and North American states and their Muslim immigrant residents and citizens. The Charlie Hebdo attacks, like 9/11, were only one expression of this broader escalating and expanding conflict. The academic literature does discuss in depth the history of France’s colonization of countries such as Algeria and Morocco, as well as the racist oppression and economic marginalization Maghrebi immigrant families face—even two generations later. (Bienkowski, 2010; Bowen 2007; Cesari 2002; Franz 2007; Limage 2010; Keaton 2005; Jugé and Perez 2006; Landof and Pagan 2005; Levine 2004; Mahmood 2006; Zimmerman 2015). This paper will thus explore the question of whether there is a “school to terror” pipeline—that is, is there anything about the pedagogy, curriculum, school culture or educational policies of France which might well be contributing to the radicalization of young people? I will conclude with consideration of what peace pedagogy might be able to contribute in terms of conflict transformation.

Highlights

Beyond observing that the Kouachi brothers had dropped out of school, and had been engaged in typical student activities such as soccer, scant attention seems paid to the details of their educational experience
The confusion becomes even deeper when one notices that media profiles, for example the New York Times (NYT) and The Guardian, contradict one another on biographical facts such as if the brothers were abandoned or the fate of their parents is unclear (Chrisafis, 2015) or if they did die (Callimachi and Yardley, 2015)
Countering violent extremist (CVE) theorists often speak of “push/pull” factors relating to radicalization

Summary

Who Were the Kouachi Brothers?

Beyond observing that the Kouachi brothers had dropped out of school, and had been engaged in typical student activities such as soccer (and apparently marijuana), scant attention seems paid to the details of their educational experience. One further detail from a New York Times profile was significant: the preacher who seems to have radicalized the Kouachi brothers, Farid Benyettou, had a sister who was expelled from school for wearing her hijab (Callimachi & Yardley, 2015) Such state suppression of minority identities, be it language, clothing, faith or other traditions, appear to be the surest means of guaranteeing violent conflict. Fellag goes on to note that a number of reasons have been suggested for this, such as lack of federal funding and an educational policy of tracking students by ostensible ability, which results in racial and economic minority students being placed in the lowest tracks This tracking system, common in the U.S as well as France, is especially counterproductive since the vocational tracks are much less likely to entail in-depth civic, political or service learning components and are likely to open only limited career opportunities (Fellag, 2014; Janmaat & Mons, 2011). These can reasonably be seen as push factors in the language of CVE theory (Lombardi et al, 2014)

Contemporary and Historical Context

Policies and Pedagogies for a More Inclusive Vision