French President François Hollande says France will accept 30,000 refugees, not tolerate racism

A Refugees Welcome flag in a French refugee camp.
(Image credit: Philppe Huguen/AFP/Getty Images)

French President François Hollande said in a statement on Wednesday that France has a duty to accept 30,000 refugees over the next two years. "Life must go on," he said, further insisting that racism against Muslims would not be tolerated in France.

One of the suspects in Friday's Paris terrorist attacks was believed to have entered Europe disguised as one of the thousands of Syrian refugees fleeing their war-torn country. In the U.S., Republicans have seized upon the suspicion to question the wisdom of President Obama's plan to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees next year — a third of France's commitment and a mere fraction of the 500,000 asylum seekers Germany has pledged to accept.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.