- Hassen Hammou founded the collective Too young to die, in the northern districts of Marseille. He is the collaborator of environmental deputy François-Michel Lambert.
- He campaigns for the establishment of quotas for the employment of people from diverse backgrounds in administration and the largest companies.
- Faced with the finding of failure of the measures for the employment of these people, he considers the introduction of quotas as the most concrete solution.
Quotas in administrations and the largest companies for the employment of people from diverse backgrounds. Hassen Hammou, president of the group Too young to die founded in the northern districts of Marseille, and collaborator of environmental deputy François-Michel Lambert, carries this will in a context of social mobilization against racism. 20 Minutes met him.
Why are you in favor of setting quotas for recruitments?
In France, there are quotas for the employment of disabled people, because they are justly excluded because of their disability. People from neighborhoods also experience a form of disability, which is why I would like to see the establishment of quotas to normalize recruitment.
What forms of "handicap" do these people from working-class neighborhoods experience?
To live in a city is to have a name with a foreign consonance, it is to have an address in this well identified territory, and recruiters do not cross the barrier of the first impression for these people from these territories. The selection is made naturally on certain criteria, and very often these are criteria of exclusion and discrimination.
If the State were the guarantor of this cohesion, it would in fact avoid this growing feeling of exclusion, which causes citizens to take hold of the drama of George Floyd or Adama Traore to express this discomfort. The State must take hold of this subject by applying simple criteria, we have been talking about this subject for 20 years and there is still no diversity in all strata of society, such as the media or justice. Harry Roselmack is no longer a sufficient symbol, we must take the next step. We can no longer be satisfied with a historic symbol, we need today's symbols.
Many people in #Republic against #racism and #PoliciesViolence ... It is necessary to use this moment to build a more just and less violent society ... ✊Together ... pic.twitter.com/laECcZFZ0U
- Hassen HAMMOU (@HammouHassen) June 13, 2020Yet solutions exist for the employment of these people?
All the systems put in place turn out to be failures. Whether it is city policy, subsidized contracts, these devices have failed. The use of quotas is the most concrete solution to reinstate people from cities.
How do you imagine the implementation of these quotas?
I would like us to tax half of the employees from diverse backgrounds in the administration and the public service, and legislate for the implementation of quotas in companies with more than 50 employees. We are going beyond the free zone system, which was based on a counterpart with a tax allowance. There, there is no counterpart. The state knows how to set up criteria for certain things such as social housing, the next step is the establishment of quotas for the employment of these people from diverse backgrounds. It is about political courage.
Do you not think that the introduction of quotas would be an admission of failure for the state?
The state must finally recognize its failure. Since the burial of the Borloo report, until today, no measure in this direction has been taken. It is a question of political courage, we must recognize these minorities. This is one of the major challenges of this crisis, how will people of the 3rd or 4th generation finally feel French in their own right and not entirely in their own right? It is necessary to go beyond what happened with Adama Traoré, it is a judicial question, the evil is deeper.
Why is this proposal so difficult to find its place in the debate?
Because the main argument amounts to saying "we want a Fatima because it is competent", this is the argument of competence. Not the place of origin or appear, but the jurisdiction. With equal skills today, these people are not hired, or too few. The machine is seized. There are not enough minorities. When a young person who has made a mistake will be condemned by a judge whose name is Mohamed, who will be able to say to him right in the eyes "you screwed up for such reason", the report which these young people will have with the State, the justice, the police, will change.
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- Company
- Marseille
- Administration
- Racism
- Diversity
- Quotas
- Employment
- Society