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to its former glory and modernised with a spectacular glass
pyramid to welcome the millions of visitors who pass through
every year.
Into a New Millennium
And now we are at the beginning of a new millennium, and
despite political upheavals, the advent of the European Union
single market, wars abroad and the threat of terrorism around
the world, Paris continues on its glorious road. Of course, its
longtime residents grumble about the state of their urban
environment, with 2.3 million people in the city and another
10 million in the suburban surrounds. Talk about the traffic
and the smog! And what should be done about the crowded,
angry suburbs, seething with immigrants from former French
colonies in North Africa, people who have French nationality,
but who have been assimilated neither into society nor the
workforce as 'true French'? In a formerly Catholic country
with a separation of church and state, how does one deal with
the fact that some eight per cent of the population is Muslim
and that some 13 per cent of the Paris population is made up
of immigrants? How many more should the country admit?
How many of the limited number of jobs will they take from
the French, and how can they be integrated into French life?
Of course, other European capitals are dealing with problems
of the same sort and answers are slow in forthcoming. But
France, in particular, with a culture that believes in rational
solutions to most problems, is at a loss when they do not
appear. Protest marches call for solutions while cars are
burnt in the northern suburbs, and Parisians—who love to
talk about politics—have differing views on what should and
can be done.
So this is a time of some confusion as Paris strives to
maintain its traditions while adapting to the modern world.
Yet the marvel of Paris is that the city, for the most part,
is managing to hold on to its appreciated traditions while
meeting the future, as it must. As for Parisians, despite all
the uncertainties and changes, they are proud of how the
history of their city melds into their comfortable modern
surroundings and they know how fortunate they are.
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