More than 300 left-wing elected officials and environmentalists are calling, in a column published in Release, to demonstrate on Sunday to demand the abandonment of the immigration law, which, according to them, “represents an unprecedented decline in the protections and rights guaranteed to foreigners in our country”. “This law flouts the principles resulting from the French Revolution with the questioning of land law,” wrote the signatories on Friday, including the mayors of Nantes Johanna Rolland (PS), Lyon Grégory Doucet (Les Ecologistes), Lille Martine Aubry ( PS), Grenoble Éric Piolle (Les Ecologists) or Montreuil Patric Bessac (PCF).
The law adopted by Parliament in December “criminalizes undocumented people by reestablishing the offense of illegal residence, but in addition, it restricts access to social benefits and housing for foreigners who reside legally in France.” they add.
Denouncing in this text “the cultural victory of the extreme right under the friendly exterior of ‘at the same time'”, the elected officials consider that the implementation of the reform would lead to “the lasting impoverishment of tens of thousands of families and of children” and would have “very serious consequences for our cities, our metropolises, our departments and our regions”. Adopted by Parliament, the immigration bill notably restricts the payment of social benefits for foreigners, establishes migration quotas, calls into question the automaticity of land law and reestablishes an “illegal residence offense”.
In a previous column, published in Mediapart and Humanity, some 200 personalities – actors, writers, journalists and even political leaders and union representatives have already called to demonstrate on January 21 against the promulgation of this immigration law. A first demonstration, called by associations defending undocumented immigrants, has already brought together thousands of opponents on January 14 throughout France.