Mapping the political opportunity space of secularism: French republican appeals to laïcité

Abstract

As European populations become more religiously diverse and governments respond to the changes brought by recent migration, political debates vis-à-vis the place of religion in the public sphere are likely to increase. The apparent tensions between individual religious freedom, national cohesion, and government control of the public sphere lie at the heart of French narratives of 'laïcité,' France's particular approach to secularism. In this paper, the laïcité narratives of the top Républicain candidates - Juppé, Fillon, and Sarkozy - illustrate the range of narratives used by parties on the right, from 'establishment' to 'identitarian.' The paper also provides a general political opportunity space model that incorporates right-left and cosmopolitan-identitarian dimensions and stretches beyond the boundaries of the French right to include a full range of the available space on this issue. This model can thus be applied to similar research in other states and regions.