A question concerning the recent 2005 riots in France?

I know that not too long ago, there were riots that swept all across France. the riots were so extensive that it was referred to as the "French intifada" The reasons given for the riots were that ,according to the rioters, the local european French had, for a very long time, practiced a policy of discrimination, particularly job discrimination, against people of African and Arabic descent {one of the examples they gave was that if someone had given in a job application and the name on that application was an Arabic or African name, it was thrown away, whereas french names were accepted.} So ,the riot were a heated response to that discrimination. It was reported that during the riots, the rioters were screaming "Allah akbar!" {95% of rioters were Muslim} My question is, why did they bring religion into this? Was their grievance not that they were perescuted as foreigners and not necessarily as muslims....or were they? Why did they bring religion into a social issue? anyone?

Your question is a deep one and I'll try to answer it properly in a short space. We first need to understand that for the most part the rioters are not thinking about the details of what they say or do let alone the implications of either after the fact. Destroying buildings, attacking firemen, and burning your neighbors cars are not going to help your cause or you personally. It is misplaced agression at an overall frustration. Taking note of that you also have a wide selection of young trouble makers, who even if they had no grievance, would look for one to be irresponsible and destructive. To be honest the discrimination is against Muslims and Africans not all foreigners and a religious slogan is easier to yell out by a rioter than a new bill of rights!
The riots were in theory legitimized by the rioters as a fight against oppression, but in practice it is much more complex.
Religion is just an easy scapegoat to hide under.

In France, colonialism was very different than in other nations. The French did not just exploit their new lands but they also granted citizenry to the new inhabitants. Even now, France does not keep records of race or creed in population statistics. So on paper everyone is equal, everyone is French. The first immigrant citizens of North Africa, sub-saharan Africa, and the Indian ocean territories were a different type of immigrant. When they moved to their new land for prosperity and a better life, they for the most part assimillated and made the most of their opportunities. They valued the west, shared its ideas, and indeed became "French".
Starting in the late 80's and 90's the immigration was entirely different, the world became a different place, and with its changes the common European's attitude towards immigration changed with it. As the immigrants want less and less to integrate and westernize, they effectively isolate themselves in sections of the city. These are often the poorest, run down, and crime ridden sections of the country. The factors for this are obviously long and complicated but this isolation contributed directly to the cycle of polarization. White people, inculding cops, dont even patrol these neighborhoods anymore let alone go in them. The distrust is high and youths growing up today with parents that are not assimilated feel they have no ties to the land they live in. On the other side of the spectrum, the white french people feel the pains of globalization and feel that immigrants are the cause of their loss of the piece of the pie.

It is true that muslims are descriminated against, but not because of their religion but rather because of the stereotype given to the people who come from the Maghreb, North Africa. Religion is an easy tool to bind the rioters together. It is easier to say we are attacked because we are muslims rather than addressing the complex issues as to why they are isolated, why white people discriminate, and why, most importantly, the government is quite happy seeing this go on. For it is the government that allows anti-western immigrants into the country, not the people themselves. It is as a response to this banding together of most immigrants in this us against them fight that results in the entrenchment of public opinion.

So at the core it isn't even a social issue anymore and it certianly isnt a religious one. It just so happens that Religion is a clever way of uniting them. It also is unfortunate that I know people on both sides of this battle and half of the rioters who if tomorrow had the same opportunities as their parents did, they would not seize them. It is cool to be a jihadi in Europe because no one shoots you or imprisons you for spouting nonsence. The irony of all of this is that the rioters themselves who complain about France prefer to complain there in isolation than go back to their ancestral home and live in peace. Those who brought religion into the issue do so because they are stupid quite frankly, and they are not looking for answers they are looking for more excuses.