After I moved just over the Paris city limit to Pantin
wrote the New York Times'
Mira Kamdar a few months prior to the November attacks,
I realized my status as a foreigner in France had changed. In leaving Paris for the banlieue, I had ceased to be an American expatriate, and became just another immigrant in France.
… The immigrant’s life also means dealing with France’s bureaucratic maze.
Police prefectures handle immigration matters here. In Paris, Americans
— and foreigners from a few other countries — are sent to a room
upstairs. There, I had taken a number and within a half-hour was sitting
before an administrator’s desk. Downstairs, a room crowded with people,
most of whom appeared to be from sub-Saharan Africa and the Maghreb,
waited for their turn at a stand-up window. I now have some idea what
they went through.
… Many
of the foreigners at the Bobigny prefecture are from former French
colonies in sub-Saharan Africa and the Maghreb. In seeking legal
residency, they are asking for official recognition of their existence
in France.
Most
foreigners begin with a one-year permit. In principle, you are eligible
for a 10-year permit after five years, and may also be eligible to
apply for citizenship. In practice, many people must renew their
residency permit every year, a humiliating exercise that makes it nearly
impossible to do things that would actually help them integrate into
French society, like getting a permanent job or applying for credit.
The real problem is France’s attitude toward immigrants. …
