What's the matter with France? Young people are angry, Muslims feel unwelcome, and the economy is hurting. 'Springtime in Paris' used to be more fun.

• Author: Zack, Ian
• Position: PHOTO JOURNAL

Viewing the protests, riots, and general mayhem in France in recent months from across the Atlantic, it's hard for Americans not to wonder: Why do France's young people feel so alienated, threatened, and angry?

In March and April, following the lead of thousands of college students, millions of people took to the streets in Paris and other cities to protest a new labor law that would have made it easier to hire and fire workers under age 26. Facing the prospect of more unrest, President Jacques Chirac agreed on April 10 to rescind the law, which was intended to help create jobs and jump-start France's sluggish economy.

Last October, it was young Muslims in poor and working-class suburbs of Paris and other cities who rioted for three weeks after the accidental deaths of two teenagers who believed they were being pursued by the police. The turmoil highlighted the growing alienation of the country's immigrant youth, and spurred a national debate about France's failure to integrate its 5 million Muslims, most of North African descent, into French society.

THE FRENCH REVOLUTION

For Americans accustomed to picturesque images of cafes and museums in Paris, and the chateaux and vineyards of Burgundy, the chaotic scenes were difficult to fathom.

But the upheaval among France's young people highlights long-standing strains in France's economic and social systems, which are built on quasi-socialist ideals that date back as far as the French Revolution in 1789, when the monarchy was overthrown and a republic created under the banner of "liberte, egalite, fraternite."

Today, France has one of the widest social safety nets in the world, including a much-admired health-care system and some of the most stringent workers' rights laws. But those legal protections and generous benefits (including a minimum five weeks of vacation a year) make it costly for companies to add employees and almost impossible to lay them off. This discourages hiring and is one reason for France's high unemployment rate (22 percent among young people, twice that in the U.S.) and anemic economy.

But as the reaction to the labor law demonstrated, many of the French like things as they are, even if the nation's long-term economic health is at risk. They argue that France's policies make for a healthier, more humane society than that produced by "Anglo-Saxon" free-market economic policies favored by Britain and the U.S.

TWO-YEAR CONTRACTS

Invoking 1789, as the French often do, Charlotte...