Research Paper on Racism in France: An Analysis of Madhi Charef's Novel Tea in the Harem

Introduction

Madhi Charef is the author of the novel "Tea in the Harem" that portrays the sufferings of African and Middle Eastern immigrants who lived in France. Racism was the major cause of the problems the immigrants' experiences because the people of France felt superior over them. Racial inequality may be demonstrated in the distribution of opportunities, power, life, and wealth, afforded to people based on their race or ethnicity. Charef was directly a victim of racial segregation because he grew up in the slums. The children of the immigrants were treated the same as their parents, and it did not matter whether they migrated from Algeria to France or were born in France. Charef notes that their experiences were the same and he states "The children grow up as part of the cement and concrete" Charef 50. The immigrant has to be concrete and cement that the France people would step on without noticing their pain. Although the immigrants in France are people who should be valued and respected, Charef demonstrates a different picture in his novel "Tea in the Harem."

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The children live between cement and concrete because they have no racial identity. Madjid the main character and his friend Pat are growing up between two cultures. Madjid cannot cope with two languages where at home her mother speaks in Arabic and school he speaks French. He is willing to adopt the French culture but he is insulted and rejected because he does not belong there. Charef states that Majid is ``neither French nor Arab. He's the son of immigrants--caught between two cultures, two histories, two languages, and two colors of skin'' Charef, 1989, p 13). The children of the Algerian immigrants are forced to live on the fringes of the French society, in a dreary concrete slum. Housing segregation in France excluded the immigrant from possessing a decent house. Moreover, they had no employment hence they could not afford to pay rent. The French were the only people entitled to public accommodations are the white color jobs. The others were viewed as inexperienced and incompetent; hence they were offered low paying jobs and they also lived in poor houses. Madjid and pat are seventeen years old and were both expelled from a technical school. They have nothing to do, but to hang out with friends. They also engage in drinking and other substance abuse to relieve their stress. They do not have jobs due to racism that only provide employment opportunities to French citizens. Pat had no skills required to secure a job, and Madjid does not want to adopt alien citizenship. These forces of life make the youth to adopt anti-social behaviors. The youth become criminals to find the money for necessities where they act as pickpockets, robbers, burglars, and car thieves. The author captures the difficult lives on the street as the youths seek alternatives ways to survive. They engage in risky anti-social behaviors where they could be killed at any moment. Charef shows the impacts of cultural schizophrenia that makes the minority hopeless and alienated in society. They live in despair and the majority group is not concerned about their well-being.

Poverty and discrimination are other major issues the immigrants experience in France. They could not secure well-paying jobs due to a lack of skills and education. The white color jobs are reserved for the people of French. They not only enjoy these privileges, but they also have total power over the immigrants. Arabs face discrimination because they treated as second-hand people who do handy work and acts as subordinates to the French factories. The novel shows a society where women take up men's roles to provide for the family. Josette and Malika are two women who have been struggling to provide necessities to their families. Josette is a single mother who lacks food for her children after her husband ran away with another wife. She is poorly paid like many other immigrants, but she has to continue working due to a lack of an alternative. Poverty and discrimination are demonstrated when the workers lose their jobs following a strike. The manager of the factory states, "...single mothers, for the most part, the ones who never go on strike, the ones who are the most in need. Josette is one of those dies to be made redundant." (Charef, 1989 p. 41). Josette needed the job but due to racial discrimination, she is the first to be fired. The boss knows that she is a single mother and she wants to keep the job for her children, but he does not care. The boss sarcastically criticizes her by stating that she would die if she has no job. Similarly, Malika works in a cleaner earning low income that she cannot provide basic needs to her family. He husband fell and injured his head, leaving Malika to take care of all responsibilities. She cannot secure a decent job because she only speaks Arabic (Charef, 1989).

Immigrants come to France with dreams and expectations of a new home. Madjid had hope of better education, living conditions, and employment. When Charef describes the first day that Madjid arrived in France, one can conclude that they have reached their paradise. They were excited of their new "home" and Charef states "When she first saw the place, Malika burst into tears, and Madjid wondered if it was some kind of practical joke because back home there was never enough to eat, but at least you had your little stone-built house; at least you had a home" (Charef, 1989). Madjid reflects on her mother's reaction and longs for his home in Algeria where he only had to suffer from hunger. In France, the immigrants have encountered numerous problems that they are now hopeless and live in despair. The author says that "they're dry and cold and hard, to all appearances indestructible -- but they've got hidden cracks" (Charef, 1989). The children were once said to have hard skin like that of cement and concrete, but they have cracks due to the problems they encounter in a new land. Racial segregation and police harassment have made characters such as Madjid and Pat to indulge in self-destructive behaviors such as drug and alcohol abuse. Madjid's mother is not happy with his behaviors, but she cannot change his situation. She does not have resources to equip him with marketable skills.

Conclusion

In conclusion in the text "Tea in the Harem" Charef successfully shows the problems the Algerian an African immigrant faces in France. Racial discrimination is a significant challenge to immigrants because it limits their opportunity for education, housing, and employment. Madjid and Pat among other children of the immigrant have to row between concert and cement because they are undermined by the French. They have to be hard and humble because of thy face rejection in school and the streets. They are not entitled to decent houses hence lives in slums where they join with other desperate immigrants and learn new and risky ways of survival. They become criminals and steal properties to get money for food and drugs. They are as tough as the mixture of cement and concrete because they do not fear the police. Moreover, the immigrants lived between two cultures and languages. The above explanations show that Charef was right when he wrote that the immigrants live to grow up as part of the cement and concrete.

Reference

Charef, M. (1989). Tea in the Harem. Serpents Tail.