Who can be happy in suburbs like this?
Excerpts from the Guardian: Trapped in squalor, young voters long for a candidate to give them hope.
Natalie Kouyate approached the graffiti-covered entrance of her decaying tower-block just as a large rat darted past the overflowing bins painted with “Fuck Nicolas Sarkozy“.
In the lift to the 14th floor flat she shares with her parents and pinscher dog the stench of fetid water rose from the puddles around her feet. Often she is scared the leaks in the lift shaft will electrocute her so she braves the damp, graffitied stairwell, past doors covered with steel sheeting to keep out squatters and addicts. Sometimes the water supply cuts out completely for a week or so, or there is no electricity. [...]
In Villemomble, north of Paris, Yves Munguama, 23, a well-dressed economics student and head of a youth group, stood on a patch of wasteland that was a library before it was burnt down during the riots of 2005. The view from his family’s high-rise flat was made up of train lines, noisy dual carriageways and a patchwork of tower block windows. “We live cooped up like chickens in cages,” he said. “The new young voters are hugely motivated to turn out because of growing racism and discrimination.” He and other black or Arab young men on his estate were told by local employers there was no work, only to find white friends were offered interviews. [...]
The presidential elections may come with some real surprises…
