By what measure? I’d argue that the majority of countries in the world are “less tolerant on average” than France, and the vast majority of societies in human history have been less tolerant than modern France. Thus, France is actually incredibly tolerant in the grand scheme. What’s your yardstick in leveling such accusations?
I don't have the time to give you an essay on this, but here's the very first search result on this topic - and it's a pretty good one [0]. Note that France was the first country in Europe to do that. Coincidence?
"In 2010, France passed a law prohibiting people from wearing clothing in public that covers your face. And although many blasted the law as Islamophobic, the "burqa ban" remains in place today, punishable with a fine and citizenship course."
Here's the third search result for the term "is france a tolerant society?", from Wikipedia which has a wiki dedicated to that topic [1]:
"Racism is regarded by many in French society as a significant social problem. Racism against Jews and Muslims has a long history, and acts have been reported against members of resident groups including Algerian, Berbers and Arabs. In 2016, the French National Commission on Human Rights reported that 8% of French believe that some races are superior to others."
And just to make sure my original sentiment comes across as intended: France is awesome and I loved every minute I spent there. But I wouldn't list "tolerant" as an attribute that would come to mind when trying to describe its culture to someone who's never been there.
