Francophobia

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Francophobia, or anti-French sentiment, is the hatred of France, the French people, French culture, the French government or the Francophonie. It has existed in various forms around the world for centuries. The phenomenon has been strongest in Britain and Germany, and was often expressed in literature and the popular medium. It also is a major factor in Canadian culture.

Francophobia has grown up so fast among the Muslim community since Emmanuel Macron has defended Muhammed Cartoons by calling it "freedom of speech" that Muslim countries started boycotting French products. The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, accused Macron of promoting Islamophobia and causing many muslims in Bangladesh, Pakistan, etc. to protest against France and its President as well.

By region edit

Though French history in the broadest sense extends back more than a millennium, its political unity dates back from the reign of Louis XI, who set up the basis of nation-state (rather than a dynastic, transnational entity typical of the late Middle Ages). In the last days of the Ancien Régime, only aristocrats and scholars spoke French in much of the kingdom, as about two-thirds of the population spoke a variety of local languages, often referred to as dialects. Henceforth, Eric Hobsbawm argues that the French nation-state was constituted during the 19th century through conscription, which accounted for interactions between French citizens coming from various regions and the Third Republic's public instruction laws, enacted in the 1880s, probably in parallel with the birth of the European nationalisms.

United States edit

By 2003, as President Jacques Chirac opposed the Iraq war, a significant rise in anti-French sentiment in the United States occured. In March, the cafeteria of the United States House of Representatives had its French fries and French toast renamed to freedom fries and toast, at the direction of Representatives Bob Ney and Walter Jones.

The swell of anti-French sentiment in the United States resulting from 2003 episode was marked. Several media personalities and politicians openly expressed francophobia; News Corporation's media outlets were implicated in a campaign fanning francophobia at the time of the Iraq war. This, however, began to decline by 2006, following an increased rise in opposition to the Iraq War and rising disapproval of the George W. Bush administration. As a result, positive views of France among Americans began to increase steadily.

Francophobia

Contents

By region edit

United States edit

Individuals edit

Organizations edit