Racketeering in the school and the workplace : the law of silence | M6 | Zone Interdite

Teenagers, along with business leaders, who are the victims of extortion in France rarely speak of the aggression. They are afraid of reprisals. Those who bring charges are rare, some continue to pay, often very large sums. Victims of extortion also have a sense of guilt and shame. They can lock themselves up in a terrible silence for months, even years. Extortion imposes its own law?the law of silence. For over a year we investigated extortion in the school and the world of work, to try to understand how victims get caught up in a destructive spiral. We met victims: children, teenagers, men and women of all classes, teachers, shopkeepers or heads of businesses. In Marseilles, in the northern quarters, which are undergoing total change, we investigated and filmed scenes of extortion on construction sites. The developers, victims of major vandalism, are under strong pressure to pay off the men who threaten their construction sites. In the courts, the judges talk of extortion of funds, robbery with violence. The word racket is not a part of their vocabulary. We followed two trials for attempted extortion in the south of France.