A new structure of authority is emerging in migrant families from sub-Saharan Africa. This structure is linked to the reversal of roles. Family statuses are changing, as well as the relationships between the sexes and between generations. Young people and families from this area must cope with the gap between the traditional educational system and the rules and law of French society. This gap tends to aggravate the difficulties created by the shift from the notion of “younger brother” (strictly obeying seniors) to the Western idea of “child” (deriving from a modern society claiming to give knowledge to its younger members and to guarantee their rights). The main factors of the problems experienced by these young people seem to be conflicting relationships within the family and the weakening family structure, often due to misalliance established, in some cases, before migration itself.