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This article questions the status of “priority education” within French education policy. In particular, it questions its labelling as an affirmative action. Beyond the rhetorical effects (“giving more to those who are less”), this qualification does not stand up to examination. First, from a legal point of view, the “priority education” policy does not necessarily fit in with the prospect of a derogatory law; it is more in line with policies of redistribution, “social and territorial catch-up”. Then, in terms of allocation of resources, the article highlights that, despite official discourses, the persistence of an unequal treatment to the detriment of pupils living in the so called “priority education areas”.