France is home to the largest Muslim population in Europe. However, according to experts, discrimination in the country is pushing many highly skilled Muslim professionals to seek better job
opportunities in more tolerant societies that accept their religious beliefs. A new study by the University of Lille led by Professor Olivier Esteves revealed that highly educated Muslims are leaving France in large numbers for the UK, US, Canada, and Dubai.
The study surveyed 1,074 Muslims who left the country and found that more than two-thirds reported that they moved to practice their religion more freely, while 70% said they left to avoid incidents of racism and discrimination. Esteves suggested that Muslim professionals with in-demand skills are fed up with the way they are treated in the country. He pointed out the irony that France pays for these people's education, yet the country loses that highly skilled talent because of rampant institutional Islamophobia.
The lack of religious freedom has become a reason why Muslim professionals are leaving France, according to Yasser Louati, a French political analyst and human rights advocate who is currently the head of the Committee for Justice & Liberties (CJL). Louati argues that France loses highly skilled talent because of widespread "institutional Islamophobia," and that the "sole loser here is France."
Those who leave France are essentially trained and educated in France through public funding, which means that there is no return on investments, and instead, rival economies are profiting from those with a "rich background, both in terms of their education and culturally," he said.
The negative Muslim portrayal in French media was intensified during the 2022 presidential campaign by far-right candidates Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour, who dedicated much of their election campaign to the "threats of Islam," added Louati.
A 2016 study revealed that a fifth of all instances of Islamophobia in France happens in the work environment. According to a 2021 government report, job applicants with Muslim Arab-sounding names have a 32% less chance of being called in for an interview.
Islamophobia in France is "more prevalent because it is more visible," however, this does not mean that "other Western governments are better," said Louati. He pointed out that if we take a look at what the UK is doing to their Muslims, or what Italy is doing or what, for example, the US is doing, there is no big difference. However, even if their policies tend to be somehow radical, there are still more opportunities for Muslims there than in France.
Muslims are fully aware that they cannot completely escape prejudice in the West; however, discrimination at the workplace or in general is "more visible and less sophisticated in France," he added. "Muslims are trying their very best … Muslims are here to stay like it or not, Muslims have been here before you, and they will be here after you," said Louati. Photo by Gryffindor, Wikimedia commons.