France and the post-Charlie challenge

Not everybody is Charlie after all. In the wake of the massive demonstration of national unity, on 11 January, France has discovered that the consensus around its much cherished “republican values” is not as widely shared as expected.

The “I am not Charlie” movement is heterogeneous, from people distancing themselves from the satirical and often provocative Charlie Hebdo to a large part of the young Muslim population of France rejecting mainstream values.

It poses a challenge to t...