The anti-Semitic phenomenon that erupted in the 2000s has generally only been explained in ideological or psychological terms. There has been talk of the malaise and anguish of French Jews, of anti-Semitic hatred of Islam, of the crisis in the suburbs… But not enough has been said about the root causes, which are rooted in the very fabric of French society and the logic of European development. The author argues that France’s political culture, marked by state centralism, changed after the war. The Jewish condition, which had always been problematic (suspicion of dual allegiance, etc.), finally found a respite, a new type of identity, “community identity”, combining self-affirmation with citizenship and ambient culture: a non-communitarian community. It was a golden age. The 1980s saw the framework of this development challenged both from without and from within. From within: the advent of François Mitterrand. The Jewish community became an instrument manipulated by party politics as part of Mitterand’s “anti-fascist front” strategy against Lepénisme. The anti-racism that emerged at that time sought confirmation from Jews, survivors of the Holocaust. From the outside: the immigration of a large Muslim population. Condemned for its communitarianism, this poorly integrated population delegitimized the “Jewish community” to the point of identifying it with a foreign community. The symbolic stature of the Jewish community has also made it the target of covetousness and competition from Muslim immigrants who are fed anti-Semitic propaganda on Arab satellite TV. The Jewish community, like France, is at a crossroads. Its post-war model is outdated, it itself has drifted, and society no longer supports its existence as it has crystallized over the past 50 years. The author examines the various possible scenarios, distinguishing between inescapable determinism and the elements necessary for a possible future.
