Sigal Samuel: What do you make of the results of the first round of voting?

Tareq Oubrou: These results were expected; they weren’t a big surprise. But the rise of the National Front is an indicator that French society is in crisis, an economic and identity crisis. The same questions that animate America—globalization, unemployment, terrorism—these questions play an important role in our elections today. French society is scared of Islam, is scared of terrorism, and the advance of the National Front is a sign of that fear.

Samuel: How do you feel about a potential Le Pen victory and its impact on Muslims?

Oubrou: It doesn’t worry me. The National Front’s main issue is with immigration, not French Muslims. And Le Pen can’t change the law. French society will react. It doesn’t accept racism. Just because Le Pen is in government, doesn’t mean society will go along with anything.

But I don’t think the National Front will govern. … It’s not easy to govern when you don’t have the experience and you don’t have a clear plan. How do you leave Europe? How do you isolate yourself from the world? How can you definitively seal the borders? Politicians promise a lot of things, but once they gain power they realize that the reality is very complex. We saw this with Trump: He promised to withdraw from the world, but reality is catching up to him—he has to engage with the world, otherwise there’s chaos.

Samuel: How would a Macron victory impact Muslims?

Oubrou: Macron didn’t play off identity issues. He portrayed himself as the candidate of Europe, of open identity. He has talked about the need to fight terrorism, but rarely about Islamism. I don’t know his mind, but from his declarations it seems he has no problem with Islam—the problem is terrorism.

But what counts for Muslims is what’s happening in society, over and above the politicians. … The French don’t understand religious practice because their own traditions are so, so secular. For them, any Muslim practice is a form of Islamism. This prejudice gets reflected by many politicians, on the right as on the left.

Samuel: Several candidates in this election suggested that the assimilation of Muslims in France is a major problem. How do you respond to that?

Oubrou: I understand it. A French person who is scared of Islam—I understand it. If I were a Frenchman who didn’t know Islam, I’d also be scared, because every time they talk about Islam it’s in terms of terrorism. There are legitimate fears. It’s legitimate to be scared when you hear about people who kill in the name of God and in the name of Islam. You’re going to ask yourself: The Muslim next to me, isn’t he at risk of becoming a fundamentalist and a terrorist? So the idea circulates that every Muslim, even if he’s nice, risks becoming a fundamentalist or terrorist. Prejudices circulate and fear is the response. How can you prevent that?