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In France, kebabs get wrapped up in identity politics

Four kebab houses opened last month in Blois, bringing the total to over a dozen in the pretty Loire valley town where tourists come to see the castle. The far-right National Front party railed: ‘The historical centre of Blois, the jewel of French history, is turning into an Oriental city’. The implicit message is clear: the now ubiquitous kebab, popular with the young and cash-strapped, is a sign that Middle Eastern culture has taken root in France, where not everyone is happy about the presence of 5 million Muslims.

‘The kebab is a bit of a reflection of all the problems with immigration and integration in France,’ says Thibaut Le Pellec, founder of KebabFrites.com, a website that ranks kebab houses across the country and seeks to raise the reputation of the ‘kebabistes’ who make and sell the food.
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