Faced with the exodus of thousands of Ukrainians, civil society and leading political figures have rethought their way of seeing immigration. Let’s hope that this humanist momentum is lasting and unconditional.
It took a war and thousands of civilian deaths at the gates of Europe for that. Why ? So that Robert Ménard expresses remorse after the abject headlines of the Béziers newspaper and the displays of his city, for years, about the Syrians. “There are not two kinds of victims: there are not Christian Europeans who should be defended and then people in the Middle East who are Muslims and who we would have been right not to accept in our country.“, declared the support of Marine Le Pen. Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, he is a humanist.
It was therefore necessary for more than 2.5 million people to leave their country at war in order for the remarks of right-wing and far-right candidates to disappear from the presidential campaign, giving the impression that France is a country ruined by uncontrolled migratory flows. . Exit the “there are too many immigrants in France” by Valerie Pécresse. Now refugees and solidarity have replaced migrants and hatred in all minds, even the most narrow. Only Eric Zemmour seems to persist in his crass stupidity.
There is no reason to rejoice in a war. Really none, let’s insist on that. But Robert Ménard is not the only convert. The challenge is broader than that. There is something comforting in seeing Europe regain a sense of welcome. Calais find accommodation places for those waiting to reach England. To see the French mobilize. To make donations. Going so far as to rent empty Airbnbs in Kyiv (Kiev) so that the money goes to the families. Create citizen convoys to bring and welcome Ukrainians home. Until now, With open arms was bad fiction with Christian Clavier. Now it’s a bit more than that. Let’s hope this change is lasting and unconditional. Let more humanity be expressed to all refugees.