Explained: Why students across France are protesting and blockading schools
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From classroom crisis to street riots: Inside the spark behind France’s student unrest Photograph: (Credit: AFP)
French high school students are blockading schools nationwide over severe teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms, and budget cuts.Here is what is fuelling the unrest.
Student protests outside schools have shaken France in recent days, with teenagers blockading entrances and security forces at times responding with tear gas. The interior ministry says more than 5,000 people have been arrested since Monday (Sep 28). The education minister said about 735 establishments were affected on Friday. A major new day of protest is planned for Tuesday (Sep 29) news agency AFP reported.
The government says the grievances may be legitimate but violence is not, and accuses the hard left of stoking the movement. Critics say some police used heavy-handed force against protesters who are legally still children.
The protests involve lycees, which teach 15-to-18-year-olds. Students cite teacher absences, classroom conditions, overloaded timetables and days that can run from 8 am to 6 pm. Speaking to news agency AFP, sociologist Valerie Becquet said pupils, particularly those from low-income areas, feel they receive an inferior education. She noted glaring inequalities between schools. Elite institutions remain dominated by white, affluent students with university-educated parents.
The movement began on September 17 at Saint-Exupery high school in Creteil, a Paris suburb, in support of striking teachers who cited a lack of staff and resources. It spread nationwide over the past week. Saint-Exupery has since returned to normal after authorities agreed to send extra staff, including a deputy principal and a nurse. Pupil Abderrahmane said grades were slipping and that not rallying would have augured badly for the future.
Dramatic footage, notably on TikTok, is fuelling the protests. Students film burning bins and tear gas, and channels edit together the most dramatic moments. Becquet said social media lets students offer a narrative different from traditional media.
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With presidential elections just over half a year away, the government accuses the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) of being behind the movement. LFI's Manuel Bompard rejects this, saying the government is descending into conspiracy theories. LFI candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon, polling above 40 per cent among 18-25-year-old voters, has backed the protests while urging non-violent methods.
Protesters have blockaded schools, burned bins and thrown projectiles at police. Police have dispersed some using tear gas, rubber bullets and sometimes batons. After clashes in Tours on Wednesday, a young man lost the use of his right eye, the city's prosecutor said. Viral videos show alleged brutality, including an officer placing an arm around a girl's neck during her arrest. An officer in Belfort was chased, beaten and kicked by a group of youths.
