
In other words, they’ve learned nothing.
(Reuters) – France announced new measures on Thursday aimed at helping schools combat radical Islam, racism and anti-Semitism in reaction to deadly Islamist attacks two weeks ago.
The moves, including more teacher training and civic and ethics education in the country’s secular curriculum, come after dozens of schools complained of pupils refusing to join a Jan. 8 nationwide minute of silence for the victims.
French symbols such as the flag and national anthem will be explicitly celebrated and one day, Dec. 9, set aside as a “Day of Secularism”. Poor pupils will receive more grants and efforts will be made to make school intakes more socially diverse.
While millions of French marched to defend freedom of expression after the killings at satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, others have described its cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad as offensive and rejected the “Je suis Charlie” (“I am Charlie”) movement of national unity.
In an unprecedented indictment by a French leader of the country’s failure to integrate large immigrant populations from North Africa and elsewhere, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said this week the aftermath of the attacks demonstrated that a form of “social and ethnic apartheid” existed in France.
