Divisions Within the French Community Formal and informal social networks link groups of French people to each other in Houston. Yet there is no general sense of community among them. There are no evident political or religious divisions among French Houstonians. The two most important lines of division seem to be length of residence and level of education. French employees of French firms, brought to Houston for a residence of only a few years, have relatively little contact with permanent French residents. Their social contacts tend to be with each other and with the American employees who outnumber the French in the local offices of most French firms. Among permanent residents, the majority belong to no group that brings them into association with other French people. The same people tend to see each other at social and cultural functions. Although small entrepreneurs are represented in the Alliance Françoise membership, organized cultural and social life seems to attract primarily well-educated French people. Hairdressers, restaurant waiters, and less well-educated war brides are more likely to be left out of the social functions of the consulate and of the formal organizations.