War by Other Means: Fighting “Radicalization” in France (2014–2019)

Abstract

In his lectures of 1976 at the Collège de France, “ Society must be defended “, Foucault reversed the famous Clausewitz's aphorism 1 and stated that “politics is the continuation of war by other means”. By doing so, he addressed a strong critique to the traditional theory of the State 1 , which consisted in the refutation of the ontological distinction between modern government and war. Following on Foucault's remarks, this article aims to understand the form of power that rises through modern Islamophobia in France, and specifically via the struggle against what is called “radicalization”. Thus, the definition of “radicalization” is used by the State to re-establish its symbolic borders and to define the internal enemy, allowing the continuation of “the war by other means”. Therefore, the struggle against “radicalization” consists in at least two specific forms of power: the punishment, highlighted by the contemporary upheavals in antiterrorist justice, and the disciplinary apparatus designed to prevent “radicalization” through a psychopathological approach. Hence, a variety of institutions are mobilized for the surveillance and neutralization of Muslim populations, such as school, prison and social welfare. The article combines a short genealogy of the notion (within both academic and political fields) and the results of a long-term fieldwork conducted in France with relatives of those who went to jihad , as well as observations of antiterrorist trials and interviews with social workers. In both cases, the article aims to demonstrate that “radicalization” is the key notion that allows the State to re-impose its sovereignty on its subjects and territory.