Sociologically, the 19th arrondissement is very racially diverse and religiously multi-denominational, with a mix of Catholics, Jews, and Muslims. 25% of its inhabitants live beneath the poverty line.
Here, 44-year-old Abdoulaye Sissoko, head of his security company, and 34-year-old Zakaria El Haroussi, garbage man and former crack dealer, tell the story of Paris’s 19th arrondissement, where they were born, grew up, and have always lived: a story that combines politics, radicalization, delinquency and organized crime, police violence, altercations between gangs, drug trafficking, and prostitution. Then again, these mean streets have also given rise to success stories.