Integration

Last week, I completed two days of "integration training" for immigrants to France. This training must be completed within the first year of one's visa. As the bureaucrats and paperwork reminded me again and again, the visa is a contract and the training is part of that contract. Fortunately, they provided a translator for me and the other English speakers.

Day 1: Civics.

Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

• France is really old: ruled by Rome in 52 BCE. Since you can't go very far in this area without hitting a Roman ruin of some sort, this was kind of obvious.
• They had a lot of kings from five main dynasties. In the fifth century AD, Clovis pushed the Romans out. Lots of skirmishes, but eventually the country unified.
• 1598: Henry IV wanted to change religions so he wrote a text promoting freedom of religion to give him cover. It mostly works out for them.
• 1789: inspired by the American Revolution, the French Revolution happened. You're welcome.
• First Republic, Declaration of the Rights of Man. Somehow, they decide to elect Napoleon. Only later will they come to realize this might be a bad decision.
• Empire: Yep, they start realizing it. But he creates the Napoleonic Code, which is the basis for 80% of EU laws (Louisiana, too, BTW) so it was not all bad.
• Restoration: Maybe that monarchy thing wasn't so bad after all. Kings Louis XVII and Charles X
• Monarchie de Juillet: Louis Philippe, no explanation given, but the name suggests it was short lived.
• Second Republic: Because they did not learn their lesson the first time, they elect Napoleon's nephew.
• Second Empire: Dear France, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results.
• Third Republic: Coming to their senses.
• 1905: Separation of Church and state became law. Because those kings and their clergy advisers have done enough damage by now.
• 1940: Hitler takes over. Occupation. Maybe those kings and clergy and emperors weren't so bad after all.
• Provisional Government: Charles de Gaulle sets France on the path to self government again
• Fourth Republic: Come on, guys, get it together.
• 1956: Current French Constitution is written. By now, I think you see why we always refer to it as the "current" one.
• Fifth Republic: de Gaulle returns to clean up the mess. Current president is Holland, #7.

The French government is similar to U.S. with executive, legislative, and judicial branches. But the people vote directly only for President, Mayor, Department and Regional councilors, and a Deputy for the National Assembly, kind of like a House of Commons. The president picks a Prime Minister, who then selects a cabinet of ministers, and together they make up "the government." The Department and Regional Councilors elect senators, which sounds kind of like a House of Lords. But because of the egalite' part of the national motto, we won't acknowledge that.

Minimum wage is €9.41

TAXES!

The nickname for France is The Hexagon.

Marianne was never a real person, just an icon.

Liberté, egalité, fraternité, aka the opening of the Declaration of Independence; men, women, citizens, immigrants, tourists, rich jerks and the rest of us all follow the same laws; and socialism.

 

Day 2: Daily Life

Now we get into the nitty gritty details about living in a new country.

• The role of the mairie (city hall) in your life
• How to get a bank account
• How to get a driver's license
• How to participate in sports and physical activities 
• How to learn about culture through libraries, museums, and journées des Patrimonies (local history days)
• How to join associations (and that volunteerism looks good on your citizenship application) How to register for health care 
• How to enroll your children in school (and that children who do not speak French can get special instruction in the language at school)
• How to find housing 
• How to apply for family benefits, including child care
• TAXES (because we have to pay for all these services, after all)
• How to get the mandatory insurance (housing, automobile, and responsibilité civile, which covers you if you hurt someone or damage something
• How to find a job. Keep in mind that some jobs are reserved for citizens only: national security, public safety, civil service, owning a tabac, and running a mortuary.
• How to form your own company, because anyone, even immigrants, can be entrepreneurs in France

The most interesting part of the program was the statement that l'emploi est un facteur majeur de l'intégration... Work is a major factor in integration into France. When I received my long-stay visa, I was surprised to see that I had a work permit because I did not ask for one. Today, I discovered that everyone who receives a visa is encouraged to work. It makes sense that a socialist system would want as many people paying taxes as possible, and the services we receive are considerable:

Police, fire departments, education, transportation infrastructure, unemployment benefits, housing assistance, retirement benefits, 20 hours of professional development each year for everyone, subsidies for stay-at-home parents until the child is age 6 or subsidized childcare if both parents work, assistance for major essential home repairs. And of course there's the healthcare: the government pays 2/3 of medical expenses for anyone who earns more than €740 per month, and pays 100% if you don't.

By the time I walked out of that small, crowded training room, I did feel like I learned more about how to fit in and fill out some of the paperwork that France requires. And now I have to certificates to add to my own pile of papers.

Vive la France!