** Evolution of identity debates in France: a reflection on national belonging and the challenges of immigration **
On February 6, 2025, France was plunged both in sorrow and the debate. While the country met to pay a final tribute to Catherine Laborde, the French television icon, Prime Minister François Bayrou, for his part, awakened fundamental questions about national identity during an interview on RMC. Barely a few hours after the funeral, he expressed that the debate on soil law borders on absurdity by limiting itself to legal or technical issues, thus abandoning deeper societal considerations.
By evoking the concept of being French, Bayrou has raised a subject that goes beyond simple legislation: that of the very definition of national belonging. This return to quasi -philosophical concepts of identity and community may seem out of words, but it is part of a tradition – both sociological and historical – of questioning about nationality in France. Sociologists, for decades, have examined how the question of immigration and assimilation is not only a problem of figures, but a mirror of societal concerns and political issues within the nation.
At a time when political discourse is often polarized, Bayrou’s insistence on the need for a broader debate could promote a constructivist approach. Indeed, rather than focusing on legal details, reflecting on duties, duties and commitments related to nationality raises questions of a moral and civic order. What does it mean to be a member of a community of citizens? What are the values and principles that unite us?
Recent statistics reveal that more than 25 million French people out of 67 million have been born from an immigrant parent, a fact that testifies to a complex sociological reality. The feeling of migratory “submersion”, as Bayrou qualified, can be explained by the speed of demographic change and the gap between this evolution and the adaptability of institutions and public policies. The connection of the different migratory waves – historical or contemporary – allows you to understand the integration dynamics which are the common thread of our society.
The reforms mentioned, in particular that of soil law, arouse passions, recall the controversial debates of the 1980s around national identity, or the discussions surrounding the principle of “double soil law”. The latter allows children born in France to foreign parents to acquire French nationality under certain conditions. In the current context, a reform could, according to some, constitute a step forward towards better regulation of immigration – while others perceive it as a dismantling of the foundations of inclusive society.
Bayrou is not the only one to launch the idea of a great debate. Gérald Darmanin, for his part, pleaded for a constitutional revision. Although her approach has encountered many criticisms, she illustrates a movement always present in the French political landscape concerning the foundations and perceptions of identity. The tension between “integration” and “multiculturalism” is weakening even more when the divergent voices issue recommendations which seem irreconcilable.
The requirement of a worthy and detours debate can also be used to avoid shifts to extreme speeches.
Let us remember that the history of national ideas in the country has often been marked by tensions, but also by notable advances. Paradoxically, while these debates could fragment public debate, they could also unite certain actors around a common framework of republican values, thus making it possible to find lasting solutions to the challenges posed by immigration.
To conclude, by instilling an opening to the discussion on national identity, François Bayrou reminds us that behind each reform hides an opportunity to build the basics of a society which is both modern and respectful of its traditions. What it means to be French is ultimately more than a status: it is a commitment to bring together realities, stories and differences. An indirect consequence as long as we live today may well be that the renewal of the debate on immigration becomes an opportunity to rediscover our collective identity, through ages and generations.
By wondering about the very nature of belonging, both practical and spiritual, France could not only apprehend its current challenges with more lucidity, but also to project itself into a future that celebrates the plurality of its citizens as a rather force than a threat.