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I'm living in one of the northern towns hit by rioting and I can honestly say that there's a lot of tension here. There's quite literally a "wrong side of the tracks" aspect to this place, even though there have only been two incidents here so far (both arson) on top of the demonstrations.
The French African community here isn't that well integrated, and that's what people around here are toting as the cause for all over this - over and above anything else. There's a demographic difference between the land over the metro line and the quarters close to the centre of town. You just don't see people of Morrocan/Algerian extraction in the town centre, unless they're rich.
In my 2 months (so far) here I've noticed that beggars are mostly from that community. I pass by a high-density housing block close to the invisible demarcation line and there are a lot of bored teenagers around this neighborhood who play truant. Things seem to have quietened down around here since then but I can't help but notice that the majority opinion that French Africans are badly viewed here because of the integration "problem" is generally true. As to whose fault it is - let's just say that I'm not willing to venture an opinion just yet. As always the truth will lie between two opposite poles.
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Furry is the leader of his own cult, the "Furballs of Doom". They sit about chanting "Doom, Doom, Doom".
(From a random shot in the dark by SirLance)
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