TRUMPISM IS FRENCH:

Muslims in France are struggling to decide on who to vote for, and even whether it is worth voting in the upcoming elections. This has been mainly due to French political candidates expressing varying degrees of Islamophobia and openly racist views which they continue to reiterate time and time again.

The current French President, Emmanuel Macron, came to power in 2017, representing the La Republique En Marche party. Macron once vowed to be a President 'for all the people in France' but, throughout his tenure, he ostracised Muslims by being the first ever European country to ban the full face veil in 2011. He went on to pass legislation forbidding the wearing of hijab in certain public settings, all under the guise of secularism.

Macron's anti-Muslim policies did not stop there as, in 2020, he made a speech announcing that he would crack down on what he calls "Islamist separatism" and would be banning foreign imams from teaching Islamic classes in the country. "Political Islam has no place in France," stated Macron, who went on to mention how he felt that "Islam is facing a crisis".

There is no doubt that the anti-Muslim rhetoric made by Macron was said in an attempt to appeal to far-right voters and appease the President of the National Rally, Marine Le Pen. But, frustratingly, Muslims in France are having to bear the brunt of such rhetoric, which only serves to heighten fears and divisions in the country. 

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