2007年VOA标准英语-France's Immigrant Suburbs Outside Mainstream P

By Sonja Pace
Clichy-sous-Bois
04 May 2007

French voters go to the polls Sunday in a second and final round of balloting¹ for a new president. The contenders are conservative Nicolas Sarkozy and socialist² Segolene Royal. But, in many of the country's predominantly immigrant suburbs, there is a sense of anger and of being left out of the mainstream³ political process, as VOA's Sonja Pace found out in Clichy-sous-Bois, on the eastern edge of Paris.

People walk in silence as they take part in a memorial march in Clichy-sous-Bois, northeastern Paris, 27 Oct. 2006

The place is France, the music North African, and it's what you're likely to hear in the mostly immigrant-origin suburbs of France's major cities.

Clichy-sous-Bois lies just outside Paris, but its high-rise housing projects seem light years away from the tree-lined broad boulevards of the capital.

There's not much of anything here, says Munir, 28, who lived in Clichy-sous-Bois for 10 years before moving to another neighborhood.

"There's not even a sports stadium," he said. "Look around - there are no jobs. They keep promising⁴ us a youth center, no one is doing anything about it. Nothing has changed."

French riot police forces secure the northeastern Paris suburb of Montfermeil after incidents with youth gangs 28 Oct. 2006

Clichy-sous-Bois gained notoriety in October 2005 when the death of two teenagers sparked nighttime riots that spread to other neighborhoods and other French cities.

The French presidential campaign sparked renewed interest in the suburbs, as candidates wooed potential voters.

But, Munir says the candidates make promises, yet there is no indication they are really listening.

"Frankly,no, they're not listening," he said. "We need jobs and more purchasing power. The euro has driven prices up, and most people just can't make ends meet."

After the 2005 riots, community groups like AC-LEFEU sprang up in an effort to address the problems of the young people of the suburbs. Part of the acronym⁵ of the community association stands for "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity," which is the motto of the French Republic.

Samir Mihi, co-founder and spokesman of AC-LEFEU, says the idea was to channel the anger and frustration⁶ of these young people into changing the system rather than taking to the streets to burn cars and loot. He says the politicians have not done enough to show they care about what happens in these neighborhoods.

"If you listen to the political speeches you see they aren't really interested in the problems of these young people," he said. "The politicians come to the suburbs only at election time. They come here and flirt⁷, but they should address the real problems - discrimination, unemployment, lack of housing."

But, the seething⁸ anger among the suburb youth has been such that most politicians do not venture there.

There was no police presence on the streets where these interviews were conducted. On this particular day, gangs of youths attacked three visiting television crews, including the Arabic language channel al-Arabiya. A VOA television reporter was also attacked and so severely⁹ beaten that he required hospitalization. His camera was taken. Some residents told VOA that, in certain areas, gangs of youths, not the police, rule the streets.

The young man, Munir, was the only one who would talk openly on the street. Others declined, and a few said bluntly they do not like or trust journalists.

Many young people here blame the media for painting what they say was a distorted picture during the 2005 riots. They say the media only come when there is trouble.

Samir Mihi says the young people in the suburbs have come to distrust almost everyone from the outside. He says that, while they are, for the most part, French citizens, they do not feel part of mainstream society.

AC-LEFEU has been active in a massive voter registration¹⁰ drive in the suburbs, and Mihi says nearly two million residents have signed up, giving them a chance to have their say in these presidential elections and in the subsequent parliamentary vote.

But, he says what happens after the vote is what will count. There is no denying the situation remains¹¹ volatile¹², and Mihi warns that, unless there is real change and the politicians consider the needs of the suburbs, what happened in 2005 could easily happen again.

1 balloting   

v.（使）投票表决( ballot的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Clark took a commanding leading in the early balloting. 在最初投票时，克拉克遥遥领先。 来自辞典例句
• The balloting had stagnated, he couldn't win. 投票工作陷于停顿，他不能得胜。 来自辞典例句

2 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

3 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

4 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

5 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。

6 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

7 flirt   

v.调情，挑逗，调戏；n.调情者，卖俏者

参考例句：

• He used to flirt with every girl he met.过去他总是看到一个姑娘便跟她调情。
• He watched the stranger flirt with his girlfriend and got fighting mad.看着那个陌生人和他女朋友调情，他都要抓狂了。

8 seething   

沸腾的，火热的

参考例句：

• The stadium was a seething cauldron of emotion. 体育场内群情沸腾。
• The meeting hall was seething at once. 会场上顿时沸腾起来了。

9 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

10 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

12 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。