France

Bonjour tout le monde!

Hi everyone !
My name is Simon and I come from France. I am the new French language assistant at Willamette for this year! I am really happy to be here as it’s my 1st time in the United States.

Continue reading "Bonjour tout le monde!"

A French Noël

Bonjour! I'm going home for the Winter break and I'm so excited about celebrating Noël/Christmas with my family.
If you want to know more about Christmas traditions in France, you can check the following website where you can find lyrics for traditional Christmas carols in France.
Happy holidays! And see you next year ;-)

Winter in France

Major Strikes in France

When I talked with some students about the major strikes in France these days, their reaction was "strikes in France, really?" Déjà vu! French people are well-known for going on strike and to the streets when they want to make themselves heard. The reform that the government wants to pass (to change union privileges for some public sector workers) seems as unpopular these days as the CPE was (Contrat Première Embauche) in 2006.

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Controversy about DNA tests for immigrants in France

I chose to introduce an article about one of the most controversial issues these last days in France.
It is about one of the amendments to a bill on immigration introduced by Brice Hortefeux, the Secretary of Immigration. Indeed during the election campaign immigration issues were a very important part of discussions. One of the main points of Nicolas Sarkozy's government agenda was to 'control' immigration.

Continue reading "Controversy about DNA tests for immigrants in France"

Nobel Prize in Physics

Hi, Caroline and I wanted to introduce this article about Peter Grünberg and Albert Fert, German and French physicists, who both just won the Nobel Prize in Physics last week.If you want to know more about their amazing work, go take a look at this article. You'll be surprised to see how much use we now make of their discoveries in our every day life!

International Herald Tribune:
Nobel Prize

Bonjour!

Hi everyone!

My name is Florence Kaczorowski and I'm the French language assistant for this year at Willamette. I am from Tourcoing which is in the north of France in the Lille metropolitan area. Lille is a great place to live, it has a very rich cultural life (it was the European Capital of Culture in 2004, by the way, and being there at that time was awesome!.) It is also not far from Paris (it takes us an hour to go to the capital with the TGV) and it's just a few miles from Belgium! So if you come to France someday, don't forget to visit Lille, you'll just love it! I'm so happy to be here this year; i will be able to share what I know about my country and its beautiful culture while also discovering yours! In France, I studied English as a foreign language to hopefully become an English teacher. So, as you can guess, it's a really great opportunity for me to be here. And I already love it here. When I see something about French culture that I think may be of interest to you, I'll post it on the blog.
See you!

Speed train record in France

I have chosen to introduce this article about TGV (high spped train) to you because there is a new line from Paris to Strasbourg (East of France) which will be inaugurated in June. This is considered as a big event in France and especially where I live (you will be able to reach Paris from Reims where the train will stop a couple of times every day in 45 minutes, compared to 2 hours currently!). It will have a lot of consequences on the city of Reims because a lot of Parisians will be moving to Reims and will go working in Paris using the speed train everyday. Also, train technology is very high in France and today there was a new record of speed with TGV in Bezannes next to Reims...

speed train

Another candidate than Sarkozy and Royal wins the presidential election??? “The French version of a Bill Clinton or a Tony Blair”

Media has only been reporting Sarkozy and Royal’s deeds for the last few months. Nonetheless, a new serious candidate has appeared in the polls, his name is François Bayrou, a “centrist”. He defines himself as a democrat, a Clintonian, a man of the “third way". Besides, in this article, Bayrou reveals his view about the US politics and his choice for the next US president. The undecided voters may vote for him... Rendez-vous en mai!

Continue reading "Another candidate than Sarkozy and Royal wins the presidential election??? “The French version of a Bill Clinton or a Tony Blair”"

A woman in a position to win the presidency!

Last Thursday, French socialists chose their candidate to run for the presidential election in May 2007. Ségolène Royal won more than 60 percent of votes.

Continue reading "A woman in a position to win the presidency!"

Again violence in French suburbs

This moment marks the first anniversary of the riots that shook France last year. Violence started again in the Paris suburbs. In Marseille, a burnt bus left a woman passenger with life-threatening burns. It is important for French people to observe how Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy is dealing with this situation since he is one of the potential presidential candidates for May 2007.

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France: a principle - the right of asylum

Here is the story of a Romanian who had to escape from his own country because he had been a victim of an injustice. He was thought to be a member of the mafia by Romania's economic police.

Continue reading "France: a principle - the right of asylum"

News: by hazard or on purpose?

This article deals with the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior, the Greenpeace vessel, which took place in 1985 in New Zealand. Two French government agents had been found guilty for the July 1985 bombing. Two decades after, New Zealander Police said that they would re-examine files after Gérard Royal, a brother of the French presidential aspirant Ségolène Royal, was identified as one of the bombers. I chose this article for the reason that it is interesting to notice how mass media use restricted information they can get. In this case, the matter for them is not the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior nor the fact that they found another culpable involved in the sabotage of that vessel.

Continue reading "News: by hazard or on purpose?"

Lucie's presentation (Reims, France)

Salut, My name is Lucie Desanlis and I am the French Assistant for 2006/2007. I am 24 years old and I come from Reims which is located in the North East of France, two hours from “our beloved capital” Paris. In Reims, I studied English studies for five years and I graduated in Linguistics.

For me, I am really interested in joining the Willamette World News because it relates to the research project I pursued for the last two years at university in order to get my Masters' Degree.

Continue reading "Lucie's presentation (Reims, France)"

Murder on the Continent

Pierre Cros

Here is an article about a murder that occured in France two weeks ago. The murderer had escaped in Cote d'Ivoire. But the Ivorian police found him. The article deals with his arrest.

Employment and young adults

This article is about a French protest that occured after a the government wanted to pass a project of law regarding employment of people under 26. The firms could hire them but would also be allowed to fire them within 2 years of work. The article sums up what has been going on these days over this issue.

Chikungunya alert !!!

Marianne Fernandez

Reunion island is facing a health crisis. The culprit: Aedes albopictus, a.k.a. the Asian tiger mosquito, the vector for a painful viral disease that has ravaged the population of the French Overseas Department and dealt a body blow to tourism, the mainstay of its economy.

Reunion island: a paradise near Madagascar

For those of you who were a bit confused with the above article...La Reunion is an overseas department of France located in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, about 200 km southwest of Mauritius. Like the other DOMs, Reunion is also one of the 26 regions of France with much the same status as those situated on the European mainland.

French satirical reprints Prophet Mohammud cartoons

Marianne Fernandez

"When extremists extract concessions from democracies on points of principle, either by blackmail or terror, democracies do not have long left," Charlie Hebdo editor Philippe Val wrote. On the principle of freedom of speech, the satirical reprinted the very controversial cartoons and also printed a new one on its front page. President Chirac condemned what he considers to be ⌠overt provocations■.

France wins European handball cup!

On Sunday February 5th , France won the handball European championship on a score of 31 to 23 against Spain. The French team had already been world champion twice but had never had any medal on the continental scene┘until now.

The French and L'Obesite

Pierre Cros

France is getting more and more concerned about obesity. Especially among children and teenagers. If we maintain this pace, we will catch up with the US by 2020!

French Colonialism and its Aftereffects

This article deals with French colonialism and its "positive role". A law is about to pass to take it off the school books. I think it is interesting to read because the same thing happened between Chinese and Japanese people. It is a way to have different point of views.

Aah...Grenoble!

Marianne Fernandez

Do you know where Grenoble is, how big it is, and what famous people used to live there?

You don't???

Grenoble is my hometown.

Chirac's nuclear faux pas

French president, Jacques Chirac, shocked everybody last Thursday when he announced that he would be willing to use nuclear weapon against any country that would be involved in terrorist activities on the French soil.

In other words, if France experienced a terrorist attack like Spain did in March 2004, President Chirac could reply with nuclear technology┘which is quite similar to a certain George W. Bush▓s ideas. Ideas which were wildly contested by our president in the past┘

The E.U.'s budget problems

Pierre Cros

This article is about the European budget. Indeed, London wants to lower aid for newcomers. But the newcomers in the EU are poor and could get by with such cuts. Read it, this is important for you to know !

France: an overview

In an effort to help you understand my background, here is the country profile of the week : France. With it, you will know more about the importance of France in the EU. And you will have an overview of the country in general (the president, money, inhabitants, surface). This should be very interesting for those of you who do not know the country.

Who's in the race for France's 2007 presidential elections?

Marianne Fernandez

The riots have definitely highlighted social and economic problems in France. Some members of our government have established themselves as potential candidates for the next presidential elections, but what about the others?

Jacques Chirac (actual president), Nicolas Sarkozy (interior minister), Dominique de Villepin (prime minister), and Jean Marie Le Pen (leader of National Front Party); and the socialist party┘

French telepone scandal

The three main mobile phone companies in France have to pay a 534 million euro fine! For six years, Orange, SFR and Bouygues have been sharing information and making agreements to share the market; one of the consequences being that consumers have been paying a lot more than what they should have paid. So now the question is: who is this money going to go to? To the state? Or to the consumers?

Pierre Cros

Paris Riots

This is an article about violence in Paris suburb. Indeed, cars have been burned as protest after two North African people were electrocuted by trying to escape climbing up an electrical fence. The government finds it unacceptable and claims for calm in these districts. This happened mainly because black people are not totally integrated in today society.

New French Food Campaign

This is an article in which France cares about what children eat and concerns about obesity. So they want to create advertising about healthy food. You should read it, in the long run, that involves everybody!

Marianne Fernandez

The Paris Riots

Everything started when two teenagers died by electrocution when trying to escape the police┘And now the situation is out of control; night time rioting has raged in Paris's suburbs and urban violence has reached a dangerous point┘ How is the government going to calm things down?

Our government is focused on repression and putting people in jail when they should be looking at the causes of people▓s discontent. People in the suburbs are poorer than the rest of the population and as a consequence, when school is finished, they are purely and simply bored. They do not go anywhere for the holidays, they do not do anything during the weekends; they have to stay in those dilapidated estates that the government built for their parents when needing workforce.

For sure, things must change!!! But what is the point in burning schools? (their little brother and sister▓s school). People rioting set cars on fire but they did not go to burn the minister▓s car, no, they burnt their neighbours▓ cars, people who are in the same situation as they are, people who need their car to go to work everyday.

Some of them are 10, 12 or 14 years old; we can wonder, where are the parents? Don▓t they have any authority on their children? I wander if a ten-year-old kid has any idea of the political and social aspects of such actions or if it is just something fun to do? I just hope the government will take immediate measures to change things. But for now, the effect on the rest of the population is anger and an increase feeling for the extreme right ideas which is more than scary.

Girls and boys in the estates: no equal rights

Continuing with news of the riots...there is a big difference in the way boys and girls are treated in the suburbs. Many girls complain that in a Muslim family, they do not have the same ⌠rights■ at home as their (older or younger) brothers. Boys have a lot more freedom than girls, even nowadays, the boys can go out and come back whenever they want although their sisters have to be at home at 8pm. And outside, girls have to endure harassment and discrimination from the boys.

A girl▓s everyday life in the suburbs is everything but easy┘that is maybe the reason why they seem to show much more courage than their male peers to get themselves out of these estates and to do something with their lives.

French non-smokers will have to wait a bit more

The Parliament rejected the anti-smoking proposal although it is an important public health issue. After Ireland, Italy, Norway and Malta, one thought France would be the next country to adopt the law against smoking in public places but no, it seems like French people are not ready to give up their bad habit not even for the good of passive smokers┘

Is that French they are speaking?

If you go to Brittany, you may hear people speaking a language which is not French, but that closely resembles Welsh: It would be the Breton language, which even though has no legal status, is spoken by around 300.000 people. Despite the fact that in France you must speak French and nothing else, according to the constitution, the Breton language has its fervent upholders.

Young female immigrants in France at risk

Fifteen-year-old Rawa risks verbal abuse -- or worse -- every time she leaves her house wearing jeans. Jenah was thrown out of the family home at 11, became a drug dealer at 13, and was raped by a relative a year later.

If young men in France's poor housing projects -- scenes of three weeks of nightly arson and unrest -- have it rough, girls often have it worse. Not only do they suffer from racism, unemployment and deprivation: They also endure daily harassment and even violence in their own communities.

Pierre Cros

Hello!

My name is Pierre. I am from France and I am going to stay at Willamette for one year. This is my first time in the United States, and so far, I really enjoy it. I am 20 and I am studying English (of course), Spanish, Chinese, and International Politics. As you will have noticed, I am learning several languages but I love it. As a matter of fact, if I could, I would also learn Japanese. I like learning about other cultures and it is fantastic that we can find many people from different countries in Willamette! That is why World Views is a good thing; we can talk with people from other countries and learn about them.

My country is very beautiful I think. It has different kinds of landscape: the beaches, the mountains, the cities, the countryside and the villages. I come from the South of France (Montpellier) and it is very nice there because the weather is warm, it is a very cosmopolitan city and the beach is not very far. France is very important in Europe because it is one of the countries that signed the Rome Treaty in 1957 to create the EEC (Economic European Community) which became later the EU (European Union); thus, France is one of the founding countries of the EU. It plays a big role in the foreign policy because it is the second economic might in Europe. For example, when France said "no" to the European constitution, Netherlands followed them even though for France it was more a vote against the domestic policy. But anyways, living in France is very good because Paris is a beautiful city (though there are other good places elsewhere), the food is the best in the world and the history of France is huge!!!

Marianne Fernandez

Hi everyone, I▓m Marianne Fernandez and although my name seems to indicate that I am Spanish, I▓m from France┘but I do have Spanish origins. I▓m 24 and I will be the French assistant at Willamette this year. I come from Grenoble which is a town of approximately 250,000 inhabitants. It is situated in a valley surrounded by mountains (the Alps) and it is well known for having great places where you can go hiking or skiing in winter. After a hard day of skiing, usually people have a nice dinner and they eat ⌠une fondue■ or ⌠une raclette■ (yes, food is very important for us) and have a glass of white wine (yes, that too, is a big part of our culture)┘that▓s typical of my region. In 2002, I graduated in English so I studied English and American literature, civilization, linguistics, phonetics and translation. I have also studied Spanish for 7 years (but I forgot everything) and Italian for 1 year (but I also forgot everything) so I guess it▓s useless for me to start learning Japanese! I have been studying in Grenoble this whole time and this is my first time in the US which is so far a very good experience. Before coming, I wasn▓t expecting to meet so many great people, and this is only the beginning!!! Now, for some news: It▓s a bad time for Coluche▓s "restos du coeur" In 1986, thanks to Coluche▓s appeal, the European commission created the ⌠Plan European d▓Aide aux plus Demunis■ (PEAD) to help poor people. This year, the budget for PEAD has to be shared with 25 countries instead of 15. As a result, ⌠les restos du Coeur■ will see its budget threatened. Every winter, more than half a million of people need the meals that Coluche▓s charity provides┘

Morgane Bellanger

FRANCE COULD SAY NO TO THE EU CONSTITUTION

There’s going to be a referendum at the end of May thanks to which French
people will be asked whether they accept the European constitution or
not. For months, everybody thought the “Yes” would win easily but for the
first time last week, a poll showed that it could be the other way
around. It’s hard to tell what could be the consequences of such a
surprising result but President Chirac (strong defender of the Yes)
predicted that France would lose its credibility. Click on the link to
have more details about the constitution and about why it is not easy to
choose.

FOX NEWS WANTS THE OLYMPICS AND THE TERRORISTS TO GO TO PARIS

Seriously, when will they stop? John Gibson, a TV show host on Fox News
congratulated Lance Armstrong for supporting Paris candidacy for the 2012
Olympics. He wants this event as far as possible from New York and thinks
that Paris and the French deserve the terrorist attacks that could
happen. According to him, the French love the terrorists so much that
they will “all be nice and cozy together for a summer of Parisian Olympic
fun”. That is certainly what the Olympic spirit should be, thank you Mr.
Gibson, you’re too kind.

FRENCH MOVIES SEDUCING THE US

Fortunately, Fox isn’t representative of the whole country. It seems that
the Americans appreciate more and more French cinema which is now at the
top of foreign screen imports in the US movie market. In 2004, 40 French
films were shown in US theatres, earning 73 million dollars, and two of
them were nominated for the Oscars. Movies like “Amélie” and “The
Pianist” helped the American audience to understand that French cinema
doesn’t always match its stereotype (no action, a lot of intellectual
talking).

Morgane Bellanger

SCANDAL-HIT MINISTER RESIGNS

France's Finance Minister Hervé Gaymard, accused of lying in a scandal over a apartment paid for by the state, gave in to the pressure Friday and handed in his resignation. A 44 year-old ally of President Jacques Chirac and the father of eight children, Gaymard moved out of a luxury flat near the Champs-Elysées a week ago after the satirical weekly Le Canard Enchainé revealed that it was costing the state 14,000 euros (18,500 dollars) a month. The scandal burst out again on Wednesday when the same magazine revealed that Gaymard already has a large apartment of his own in central Paris.

CHIRAC DEFIES BUSH ON CHINA ARMS

And here we go again! Just as those two were pretending they could be friends again, another disagreement gets in the way. As France is going to join the NATO mission to train Iraqi forces, Iraq is suddenly not the problem anymore, China is. President Chirac considers that the ban on exports of military equipment to China is no longer justified. President Bush expressed his “deep concern’ and said clearly that the US Congress wouldn’t hesitate to take countermeasures.

A GUIDE TO DRIVING IN FRANCE

As far as driving is concerned, French people have a pretty bad reputation that, let’s face it, we totally deserve (we have one of the worst road deaths toll in Europe). Road regulations are pretty similar to those in the rest of Europe and in the US, but there’s a bunch of notable exceptions that one might want to know before hitting the road.

Morgane Bellanger

Students in the street, government backing down

The government is working on an education reform bill aimed at halting the decline in French educational standards. But some of the consequences of this reform don’t please the people concerned. Tens of thousands of French high school students and teachers took to the streets to protest against the changes to the revered 200-year-old baccalaureat school-leaving examination. As a consequence, the government withdrew these changes, momentarily at least.

US reaches out to "Old Europe"

"It is time to turn away from the disagreements of the past." Condoleezza Rice was in Paris last week and with these words tried to call for a fresh
start between the US and Europe, and especially France. The new US secretary of state’s effort to revive the trans-Atlantic Alliance was received positively. When Bush meets with Chirac and Schröder in Europe next week, he will need to complete the diplomatic healing that Rice has
begun.

Guide to Paris' night clubs

For those of you who are planning to go to France soon (and there are a lot of Willamette students who learned last week that they were about to
go there…) here is a useful list of the most famous night clubs of the capital. You can’t say you’ve seen Paris, if you haven’t seen Paris by night. And remember that you don’t need to be 21 to have fun over there!!

Morgane Bellanger

Happy new year to all of you!

I didn’t go back to France for Christmas. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to experience this celebration here. My
roommate Katie invited me in Los Alamos, New Mexico. I’ve had a great time there. Christmas was not so different from home but I discovered a lot of little traditions that I’ll never forget (like the lightning of “fajelitos” in the streets on Christmas Eve). Back in Salem, I’ve started the year with a tiny medical problem but it didn’t prevent me from keeping an eye on what’s going on in my country.

Bonne année à tous! Je ne suis pas retournée en France pour les fêtes de fin d’année. Je ne voulais pas manquer l’opportunité de vivre ces célébrations ici. Ma colocataire Katie m’a invitée à Los Alamos au Nouveau Mexique. J’y ai passé un séjour merveilleux. Noël n’a pas été très différent pour moi mais j’ai découvert tout un tas de petites traditions que je n’oublierai jamais (comme l’illumination des « fajelitos » dans les rues la veille de Noël). De retour à Salem, j’ai commencé l’année avec un petit problème médical mais cela ne m’a pas empêchée de garder un œil sur l’actualité de mon pays.

What you missed in France:

FREED FRENCH HOSTAGES BACK FROM IRAQ

In one of the first editions of World News, I mentioned that two French
journalists had been kidnapped by an Islamist group in Iraq. After 124
days of captivity and a continuous campaign by the press, they were
finally released before Christmas. They are thought to have been the
longest-held Western hostages in Iraq and their release is partly due to
France’s anti-war stance. A few days later, another journalist, a woman,
disappeared in Iraq.

22 FRENCH DEAD, OVER 100 MISSING POST-TSUNAMI

One tragic event gathered the world a few weeks ago. It seems that we’ll
never know the exact number of victims. As far as France is concerned, it
is for sure that 22 people died and it is likely that more than a hundred
others also disappeared. At the same time, France could set up a UN global
natural disaster center to alert countries about tsunamis and other
catastrophic phenomena on its Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean.

THE TALLEST BRIDGE IN THE WORLD

If you’re looking for the tallest bridge in the world, you can now find
it in southern France. 900 feet of steel and concrete above the valley of
the river Tarn were inaugurated by the president last month. In this
article, you’ll find a bunch of good pictures of this amazing piece of
engineering.

Morgane Bellanger

CHIRAC’S ATTEMPTED ASSASSIN STANDS TRIAL

Two years ago, during the Bastille Day parade, a 27 year-old student tried to assassinate Jacques Chirac. He confessed that he wanted to die
in the attempt and enter History. Among the crowd, he fired a single-shot at Chirac (and obviously missed him) before being overpowered by
bystanders. Maxime Brunerie now faces a possible life term imprisonment. His defense will be based on possible psychiatric problems.

ABORTION IN FRANCE

At a time when abortion is put into question in several American states, let’s take a look at how France deals with it. It’s been thirty years since abortion was legalized. Despite the fact that 220,000 women go through this every year, the process is still similar to an “obstacle race”. Getting an appointment can take a long time because more and more clinics are closing their abortion units (considered as not profitable).

THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS' LETTER TO AMERICA

In a letter published in The Wall Street Journal on November 8th, French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier has called on all Americans to quit
bashing the French and start working on improving transatlantic relations instead. He evokes historic and economic ties between the two nations
dating back to the US war for independence. This letter came a week after the candidate clearly favored by the French lost his bid for the White
House, and two years after French opposition to the war on Iraq soured relations between the two historic allies.

Morgane Bellanger

Boy slaughters familiy while watching "Shrek"

These days, everybody in France is talking about a bloody event which would not have been believable in a horror movie. While he was doing is homework, Pierre, 14 years old, decided that he wanted to kill. He waited in his family's farmhouse in northern France with his father's hunting rifle before opening fire without warning on his parents and siblings as they arrived home. Between shootings he watched “Shrek”.

Frail Arafat in French hospital

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was admitted to a French hospital near Paris. The 75-year-old president of the Palestinian Authority needs urgent treatment for what is said to be a potentially
fatal blood disorder. France's decision to treat the Palestinian leader underlined the support Paris has shown him in the past, disapproved by Israel and the United States. Israel, which has declared Arafat an obstacle to peace and threatened to kill him several times, has promised it would not impede the Palestinian leader's departure or return to Ramallah after treatment in France.

What do you like best in French Food?

As you may know, France is the world’s first tourist destination (75 million visitors per year). Food and wine play an important role in that success. But the thing is…what foreigners like in our culinary heritage
is not the same - depending on where they are from. A recent study highlights the wide difference in taste between Americans, Britons, Germans and Japanese.

Morgane Bellanger

French wine lobby wins advertising victory

French parliament voted in favor of a law which will ease the tight
restrictions on advertising wine and possibly on other drinks. A
collapse in wine sales has led to a noisy campaign for wine to be
exempted from these restrictions as a matter of vital national
interest. France's wine industry is threatened by the growing popularity of new
wines from Australia and Chile and the historic decline in domestic
consumption. By allowing this, the government is sending very confused messages to
the population since many efforts have been made to strengthen
security on roads and to fight alcoholism for the last years.

2012 Olympics in Paris?

What about a beach volleyball match at the foot of the Eiffel Tower?
This could happen if Paris hosted the 2012 Olympics. The capital,
humiliated in its bid for the 2008 Olympics (it finished behind Beijing
and Toronto), is determined to win this time.
Paris last hosted the Games in 1924 and before that in 1900 (the first
modern Olympics). France hosted the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville
and Winter Games in 1968 at Grenoble and 1924 at Chamonix. Even if
Paris is the favorite, New York, London, Madrid and Moscow are also in
the race and anything can happen. The final decision will be announced
on July 6, 2005.

Titeuf: French children`s best friend

The world of French comic strips has been turned upside down by the
phenomenal success of a new cartoon hero called Titeuf. The adventures
of this eight-year old school boy are outselling Astérix and Tintin.
Titeuf leads the life of a typical French schoolboy in a modest urban
setting of apartment blocks and grubby local parks. And one of the
reasons for its success is that kids identify easily with him.
The albums are also a cleverly observed insight into the bewildering
world of sex and adolescence as seen through the eyes of an
inquisitive innocent. There are no non-subjects: Aids, condoms, sperm,
pornography and periods all feature regularly. Some parents complained
that Titeuf was not a perfect role model, and it is true that he is
appallingly spoken and sexually obsessed. His language is peppered
with “putain” and other expletives, and he would much rather ponder
the mysteries of a girl’s bra than read a book. Not hard to guess why
kids are crazy about him!

Morgane Bellanger

MUSLIM GIRL SHAVES HEAD OVER BAN

In our last issue one of the articles dealt with how most of the French Muslim community urged her girls to obey the new law which is banning
religious signs, including the veil, when the government was facing a terrible blackmail (a terrorist group was holding two French journalists
and were threatening to kill them if the law wasn’t cancelled). But it seems that the time for unity is over. The controversy surrounding
the ban revived because of the story of a 15-year-old Muslim girl who shaved her head because she couldn’t stand the idea of showing her hair.

BUSH USES FRANCE AGAINST JOHN KERRY

President George W. Bush charged that John Kerry would let France or other countries decide when Washington can use force to defend itself.
He said, "The use of troops to defend America must never be subject to a veto from countries like France." Apparently, Bush backers still fume that Paris led opposition to the March
2003 invasion of Iraq, a move that led to boycotts of French products and the renaming of foods like "French fries" to "Freedom fries." If the “cheese-eating surrender monkeys”, as French people were dubbed last year, were to vote in November, Kerry would have 90% of their votes. Kerry’s links with France could become a handicap.

FIRST GAY TV CHANNEL IN FRANCE

Homosexuality is definitely a big issue this year in France. In July, the first gay marriage was celebrated (and annulled a few weeks afterwards).
Parisians elected a gay mayor who is certainly one of the most popular politicians of the country. But at the same time, attacks on gays are
increasing. In January, a 35-year-old gay man was severely burned by attackers who doused him with gasoline and ignited it. And now France is about to have its first gay channel, called Pink TV, on
cable and satellite. Mentalities are changing; television is making the most of it… for $11 a month.

Morgane Bellanger

FIRST DAY OF SCARF BAN BRINGS UNITY

The Secularity law passed by Chirac’s government in March is highly controversial. This law prohibits the wearing of headscarves and other conspicuous religious signs. But the hostage crisis in Iraq is taking the heat out of the debate.
On August 20, a terrorist group called the self-styled Islamic Army of Iraq, kidnapped two French journalists. The terrorists claimed that if France did not revoke the headscarf law, the hostages would be killed. As a reaction to this unacceptable blackmail, most of the French Muslim leaders, even the most outspoken critics of the ban, urged the girls to obey the law.
In spite of many internal debates, the country seems to be unified when it comes face to face with terrorism.

REPUBLICANS SHOWING NO AMOUR FOR FRANCE

Just when we thought it was over…French-bashing is back! At least, it seemed to be the game to play at the Republican National Convention, just after Kerry-bashing of course. Apparently, Republicans have still not forgiven France for its anti-war stand last year and the long time US ally became their favorite target for jokes.

DEAUVILLE FILM FESTIVAL

Far away from political considerations, Deauville is hosting its 30th Festival of American Cinema. As it coincides with the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, the Festival will honor Steven Spielberg with a retrospective of his films. Since 1975, this festival has witnessed (and maybe contributed to) the growth of the U.S. independent cinema.

Morgane Bellanger

Hi everyone!

My name is Morgane Bellanger and I’m from France. I’m going to be the French teaching assistant for the year. I was born in 1981 and
grew up in the countryside in a little village near Fontainebleau. I moved to Evry, in the suburbs of Paris six years ago. I’m finishing my Masters
in American and British civilization in the capital.
What can I say about my lovely country? We are almost 60 million (well, well…that’s a lot of bread-eating, beret-wearing, wine-drinking,
bike-riding, always-on-strike French men to handle don’t you think?). We have a long history, filled with kings, wars, revolutions, customs and
traditions. It’s a country of astonishing diversity in landscapes and people.

It’s the first time I’ve been so far way from my home and family. This year is like a personal challenge to me: I want to see if I can make it on
my own. I’ve been dreaming about spending some time abroad for years and I still don’t realise I’ve finally done it. I can’t believe how nice and
friendly people are here. Everybody in Willamette made it easier for me to get used to my new life (I must confess that seeing people smiling is a
noticeable cultural difference between here and the Parisian subway!).

I’m very glad to take part in a project like the Willamette World News because
what I’m expecting from this experience abroad is to open my mind on other cultures and to share with others how much France means to me.

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Valentin

When NBA seeks new territories in Europe:

An article on how the European Constitution scares French president Jacques Chirac, but not for the good reasons obviously

Le Monde’s tribute to Portland singer Elliott Smith who died last week, we will all miss his fading voice singing of love: (

Valentin

Cet été la France n’a vécu au rythme des festivals comme à son habitude. En effet le gouvernement Raffarin a décide juste avant les vacances d’été de remettre en cause le régime de l intermittence du spectacle. Ce régime, qui n’a aucun équivalent dans le monde, permet aux artistes (essentiellement du théâtre, de la danse contemporaine…) ainsi qu’aux employés de petites structures culturelles comme les salles de concert de toucher une indemnisation une fois qu’ils ont accompli un certain nombre d’heures de travail annuellement. L’idée derrière cette indemnisation est de considérer la totalité du travail des artistes, c'est-à-dire les répétitions pour les musiciens ou l’écriture d’une pièce pour écrivain par exemple, afin de les aider financièrement et ainsi d’aider la création artistique française, européenne et parfois mondiale. Les artistes ont répondu a cette reforme, acceptée par le ministre de la culture Jean-Jacques Allaigon, par une grève générale qui a engendre l’annulation de nombreux festivals et notamment du plus prestigieux d’entre eux, le festival de théâtre d’Avignon, plus grand festival de théâtre du monde. Cependant ils n’ont pas obtenu gain de cause et l’avenir de plus de 25,000 d’entre eux risque de s’assombrir en janvier prochain quand le texte de la reforme entrera en vigueur. Avec cette reforme le gouvernement renonce a considérer la culture et la création contemporaine comme une mission de l’état alors que depuis 1981, date de la création de ‘l’intermittence du spectacle’ aucun gouvernement n’avait remis cette mission en cause de cette façon.

Womens' Rights in France

"Neither slut nor slave” was the “mot d’ordre” of thousands of young girls who demonstrated throughout France, at the beginning of the year, to protest against violence in low working-class neighborhoods (many young girls were beaten up or burnt alive for having lost their virginity before marriage). Women have always played prominent roles in French history in every field of activity: politics, science, and intellectual life, e.g. Catherine de Medici, Marie Curie, Simone de Beauvoir, and Simone Veil. A law in 1972 implemented wage equality. Despite their equality before the law and the fact that they generally perform better in schools (57 percent of high-school students receiving the Baccaulauréat in 2002 were female), women still have difficulties obtaining high positions in public and private companies.

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Economic Consequences of the Iraq War

Threats of boycott of French products after the French government refused to support the Iraq war (they wanted the UN inspections to continue) are causing increasing concern for French industries. President Chirac tried to be reassuring and underlined that a boycott would go against free market trade, but with the beginning of the war, anti-French feelings have grown stronger. The world's largest luxury goods maker, LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) said its revenue fell 5.4 percent in the first quarter because of weaker currencies and a decline in tourism. Whereas the company said that sales in the United States were strong, small companies are the most affected by the boycott. Vine and gastronomy are the most sensitive sectors: restaurants and shops’ owners –especially in the South and in the Midwest- do not want to upset consumers by putting French products on their menus or their shelves. To fight the boycott, French companies adopted two positions: discretion (no advertisement) or Americanization (hiding their French origins or reminding that French companies employ American people). Economic difficulties in tourism started before the war; since September 11th there has been a reluctance to travel or to study abroad. As a reaction, calls for boycott of US products are spreading in Europe. Unlike American boycott that is supported by mass medias such as Fox News or radio stations, this movement is launched by grass-roots or individual groups (often through Internet). With a recent surge in petition drives and demonstrations that equate US brands with imperialism or militarism, advertisers are confronting perhaps the most sustained anti-American feelings abroad since the Vietnam War.

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Death Penalty

Vanessa Mongey

“Tomorrow, thanks to you, French justice will no longer be a justice that kills” were Robert Badinter’s words in his abolitionist speech at the Assemblée Nationale in 1981. The process leading to the abolition of death penalty was longer in France than in any other European democracy: Portugal was the first in 1867, followed by most countries at the beginning of the 20th century. The last execution took place in 1977 and socialist president Francois Mitterrand abolished capital punishment when elected in 1981. Public awareness was heightened thanks to a campaign launched by Arthur Koestler who published Reflections on Hanging in Great Britain in 1955. In France an essay by famous novelist and humanist Albert Camus accompanied this pamphlet. The main idea was that society does not have the right to avenge illegal crime by legal murder. The Council of Europe established as a condition of membership the requirement that prospective member countries commit themselves to abolition. In June 2001 an important world congress in Strasbourg (North-East of France) appealed to the 87 countries that maintain legal death penalty and Amnesty International (non-governmental agency campaigning for human rights worldwide) underlined that 88 percent of executions take place in four countries: China, Saudi Arabia, United States and Iran. French actress Catherine Deneuve brought to Georges W. Bush a petition against capital punishment signed by 500.000 persons.

Sources

A thorough page by Le Monde dedicated to death penalty in the world http://www.lemonde.fr/dossier/0,5987,3222-5495--,00.html

Amnesty International’s website: www.amnesty.org

Commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the abolition of death penalty in France
Http://www.senat.fr/evenement/archives/D22/monde.html

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Make love, not war

Vanessa Mongey

I do not know if it is genetic but when a girl hears these words, « I don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day, this is a just a stupid celebration that trades love for material presents », she automatically hears, “I am a tight-fisted nazi; I won’t spend any money on you, I can barely remember your name. I should have dumped you last week and instead of arguing with you, I would be watching a soccer game right now.” I think men have the same reaction. But why are we so obsessed by Valentine’s Day? Do we need a special day to tell people that we love them? Apparently, according to the Pope, the newspapers and the store windows, we do. In Paris the electronic bulletin boards broadcasted the declarations of love of Parisians throughout Friday. Every French newspaper (such as the very serious and respectful Le Monde and Libération) dedicated a couple of pages to “Your declarations of love”. Of course, no one obliges you to open these pages but there is a voice deep inside you that whispers, “you never know… after all these years sharing the same trashcan, my cute neighbour has maybe realized that he is not really gay and that he wants me to be the mother of his children. Maybe he declared his love in the special Valentine’s Day edition of Le Monde!” Maybe. And you end up reading through all the corny poetry of pseudo-Rimbauds deeply convinced that since fire and tire rhyme, why not associate them in the same verse?
Nevertheless many newspapers have underlined that despite these consumerist aspects, Valentine’s Day conveys an idea that is all the more powerful in this time of hatred between different nations: Saint Valentine died for his ideas and refused to give up his conception of love. Sometimes it takes more courage to promote love, peace and understanding than to abide by the will of the powerful.

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Vanessa Mongey

My name is Vanessa and I was hired last year to become the French language assistant at Willamette. I come from the South-East of France; from a city many of you have probably never heard of, Grenoble. It is a really gorgeous city nestled in the Alps; it has a dynamic atmosphere fueled by three huge universities, state-of-the art industries, ethnic diversity and the presence of a strong contemporary art scene. I also moved to Paris two years ago to continue my studies. Being surrounded by Americans made me realize how prevalent stereotypes were about France: we are allegedly –and successivelyJ- snobby, always on strike, narrow-minded, rude, and arrogant… and this list is not exhaustive!

Through this website I wish to offer a glimpse on French so-called ‘complexity’ and show the myriad of opinions and voices in this country. For instance, if it is true that many people voted for the national right at the last elections, it is also true that France has the highest rate of interracial unions in the world and that we eat couscous (a typical Arabic dish) every Sunday. If it is true that workers go on strike quite often, it is because we highly value our social rights and benefits. I think that this website will present a better perspective on the cultural diversity of our countries.

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