Fashion brands in Paris are facing a difficult situation. Customers are afraid of coming to their stores for fear of being mobbed or other violence.
That's not a class statement. That the economic situation is somewhat less favorable than it was a decade ago is widely known. That there are many immigrants on skid row and french people out of work is also well known.
But the street violence that is seen these days is worrisome, regardless on whether it is aimed at the rich and super-rich or not.
Street crime threatens one of the greatest sources of income for France: tourism.
Several incidents have raised concerns in Paris, and they have to do with property theft : muggings, thefts aimed specifically at tourists and garden variety street violence.
Paris, like many other overpopulated European cities where the economic situation is unstable or dire, is becoming unsafe. Massive immigration and economic downturn are producing fertile territory for strife and violence. What is worse, such violence is often blamed on immigrants, so that the social context of the violence is lost to simmering anger and xenophobia.
But where does that leave the Parisians or the tourists? As a matter of fact surveys conducted to establish both tourist and citizen sentiment on the matter, has turned up a very negative response. People are increasingly viewing Paris as unsafe, making the situation grave enough to prompt action from the Tourism Board and the chamber of commerce.
To make things worse, the football league fans erupted in street violence last week. The fans threw smoke bombs, and damaged bars and restaurant. Not content with the mayhem, they then attacked several tourists. And all that because the French soccer team had won their first trophy in 19 years.
At the Louvre, the most hallowed art institution in the world, museum workers went on strike to bring attention to the constant barrage of pickpockets that molest and thieve in the museum's halls.
Source : France 24/ 5.24.13
But the street violence that is seen these days is worrisome, regardless on whether it is aimed at the rich and super-rich or not.
Street crime threatens one of the greatest sources of income for France: tourism.
Several incidents have raised concerns in Paris, and they have to do with property theft : muggings, thefts aimed specifically at tourists and garden variety street violence.
Paris, like many other overpopulated European cities where the economic situation is unstable or dire, is becoming unsafe. Massive immigration and economic downturn are producing fertile territory for strife and violence. What is worse, such violence is often blamed on immigrants, so that the social context of the violence is lost to simmering anger and xenophobia.
But where does that leave the Parisians or the tourists? As a matter of fact surveys conducted to establish both tourist and citizen sentiment on the matter, has turned up a very negative response. People are increasingly viewing Paris as unsafe, making the situation grave enough to prompt action from the Tourism Board and the chamber of commerce.
To make things worse, the football league fans erupted in street violence last week. The fans threw smoke bombs, and damaged bars and restaurant. Not content with the mayhem, they then attacked several tourists. And all that because the French soccer team had won their first trophy in 19 years.
At the Louvre, the most hallowed art institution in the world, museum workers went on strike to bring attention to the constant barrage of pickpockets that molest and thieve in the museum's halls.
Source : France 24/ 5.24.13
No comments:
Post a Comment