French PM: France without Jews would not be France

French PM: France without Jews would not be France

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norman lebrecht

September 28, 2014

We have been sent video of an extraordinary speech made by the French prime minister, Manuel Valls, in response to widespread reports that Jewish citizens are leaving France in the face of rising anti-semitism.

M. Valls, wearing a skullcap while speaking in a synagogue and referring explicitly to it in his speech, spoke with passion of the role Jews played in the nation and in his personal life.

Click here to watch the impressive speech. The headline statement can be found at 25:30.

manuel valls

Although the speech was reported in parts of the French press, no word of it has appeared abroad.

Manuel Valls is married to Anne Gravoin, a French concert violinist of Russian-Jewish origin.

Comments

  • Harold Lewis says:

    Thank you so much, Norman, for giving us that link. Yes, a powerful and exemplary speech.

  • Allons enfants says:

    If France continues with its refusal to tackle wide-spread social problems, the far right will continue to thrive and people will start to rebel. Politicians needs to have a close look at who prevails in statistics concerning horrors such as gang rapes, violence on women and anti-social behaviour. It is time they come up with effective solutions to save the country from Barbaric antics. France is a haven of civilisation and culture, for goodness sake!

    In a society everyone, without fail, is expected to behave in a civilised way.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLhqTmIRaMY&sns=fb

  • FeelingLeftOut says:

    I have heard from numerous Jewish friends in Israel that they are seeing more and more French citizens moving to Israel because they no longer feel comfortable in France. I noted when I was there earlier this year that I was hearing a LOT of French in Tel Aviv, as well…

    • Allons enfants says:

      It’s not just the Jews who are feeling uncomfortable in France. Other civilised people share the same feeling and are fed with the politicians’ and the media’s laissez-faire attitude vis a vis crime and incivilities perpetrated by certain Barbaric people who have no respect for law and democracy and whose mission is to pull the country downwards.

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