Over 1,000 Roma (gypsies) immigrants have been kicked out of France, as Paris draws international condemnation and even comparisons with the Nazis.

“[T]his is a situation I had thought Europe would not have to witness again after the Second World War,” said EU Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding on September 15, as she announced that she planned to take France to the European Court of Justice on charges of ethnic discrimination.

The true situation, while far from Nazi-like—Reding has since apologized for her remarks—does raise some important concerns about Europe’s future.

France’s Roma situation began in late July, when Roma travelers in the small town of St. Aignan rioted, attacking police infrastructure and private property. A French youth was killed during the riot.

In response, French President Nicolas Sarkozy ordered police to close down 300 illegal camps over the next three months.

Although Roma from Romania and Bulgaria have the right to enter France without a visa, as fellow members of the EU, they need residency permits to stay there over three months.

French officials claim they can legally deport these immigrants if they are a burden on society.

The hundreds of thousands of Roma and other travelers who are longstanding inhabitants of France are being left alone.

France is pressuring the Roma to leave “voluntarily.” It pays deportees €300 (us$386) per adult and €100 (us$129) per child—a fact often left unreported by sensationalist journalists and indignant politicians.

France’s actions attracted criticism, but little action, until a memo from the Ministry of the Interior dated August 5 leaked out. The memo stated that of the 300 illegal camps to be dispersed, those belonging to the Roma should be a priority.

This evidence of racial discrimination prompted Reding’s comments, and could lead to legal action from the European Union.

But France is not alone in expelling Roma. They are unpopular in many parts of Europe—often accused of causing a lot of crime.

France’s Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux, for example, stated that crime statistics show that the number of Romanians—most of whom would have been Roma—arrested in Paris rose 138 percent in the past year. Pickpocketing was their most common crime.

Italy’s Roma troubles have also made world headlines. In 2008, a 60-strong mob burned a Roma camp in Naples. The government’s response? Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said, “That is what happens when gypsies steal babies, or when Roma commit sexual violence.” The leader of the right-wing Northern League—whose party is part of Italy’s coalition government—Umberto Bossi, said, “The people do what the political class isn’t able to do.”

Italy proclaimed a state of emergency two years ago—extended in 2009—due to the Roma. It attempted to categorize all Roma in the country, but backed down after stiff opposition.

Denmark also expelled a group of “criminal Roma” in July. Germany has signed a deal to return 12,000 to Kosovo.

As Jean Quatremer, writing in the French paper Liberation, said, “Paris is only guilty of having said loud and clear what others are doing discreetly.”

Morally reprehensible or not, what France’s Roma incident teaches us is this: Europe can be roused to act against a generally unpopular ethnic group.

Instead of the Roma, imagine it is the Muslims: A major act of terrorism causes right-wing politicians to speak out against Islam. Since 9/11, anti-Islamic sentiment has been growing in Europe. This terror attack pushes Europe over the edge—nations start deporting their Muslim populations. Tensions between Islam and Europe rise sharply.

This kind of anti-Islam persecution is not far from what is already happening with the Roma. And the Trumpet has been foretelling it for years.