Assimilation, integration, insertion, and acculturation are all terms that French leaders have used to describe the process by which Algerians and other Muslim immigrants have been received in post-colonial France. While each term sounds similar they are unique in the sense that they have very different ramifications. For example, assimilation is the process by which a person or persons acquire the social and psychological characteristics of a group. An example of this could be the French forcing their lifestyle upon nearly everyone who was not French, especially the colonies. Integration could be defined as “to bring (people or groups with particular characteristics or needs) into equal participation in or membership of a social group or institution.” An example of this could be regrouping in The Shantytown Kid. Insertion is the action of inserting something. An example of this could be similar to those of assimilation but in a more direct sense; the French imposing their own ideas, beliefs and customs upon Lyons while they attempted to maintain independence. And lastly, acculturation is “cultural modification of an individual, group, or people by adapting to or borrowing traits from another culture; also: a merging of cultures as a result of prolonged contact.” An example of acculturation is Azouz Begag entrance into the French educational system, and does very well in addition.

After World War II the French were thought of to have this “melting pot” characteristic, attempting to mix and unify many different regions and cultures under the umbrella of France and French culture. Those in this melting pot included then-France’s colonies with many Muslim inhabitants. Of the terms French leaders coined in the French-Muslim immigration era, a clear example of integration in The Shantytown Kid includes the process of re-grouping. Regrouping was a process that families of Algeria would unite on French soil after they were integrated into society under the twelve thousand Algerian quota. We can see here that Algerians are forced to integrate into French society and with that they were inserted into their new roles. Hence, insertion takes place. Also, another example of assimilation includes the work that Azouz’s father would do in the construction industry under the Evian Accords. Azouz’s father would wake up at five o’clock in the morning day after day only to partake in grueling labor for an unfair wage. While this was a very common practice with immigration to America in the late 1900s as well, the immigrants were forced to assimilate into the culture.