Nationwide rallies are scheduled across France this Saturday, with demonstrators voicing concerns over soaring living costs, social inequality, and deteriorating public education.
The demonstrations follow an initial wave of unrest last month centered on the country’s schools, where students have protested teacher shortages and decaying facilities.
Ahead of the demonstrations, President Emmanuel Macron urged “calm and respect,” emphasizing that the right to protest must be accompanied by respect for people and property.
France students demand better schools
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What are the protest plans?
Protest organizers say more than 600 demonstrations are planned nationwide.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told France 2 television to expect “a pretty big turnout,” while a police source speaking to AFP estimated that nearly 200,000 people will participate, including about 40,000 in Paris.
Authorities have imposed restrictions in Paris, banning rallies near the Élysée presidential palace, the prime minister’s office, the Champs-Élysées, and other sensitive sites.
A central city march has also been prohibited.
The primary Paris demonstration is set to begin at 2 p.m. (1200 GMT) at Place de la République, proceeding northward through the city.
Fears of violence at the French protests
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said Thursday that authorities are bracing for potential violence during the demonstrations.
“This is a moment of national fatigue,” Lecornu said. “We are living in an atmosphere of perpetual crisis—wars, inflation, and pressures on purchasing power.”
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally and a front-runner ahead of next year’s presidential election, said he anticipates clashes.
“I am extremely concerned,” he said while visiting the Paris car show. “It will be a day of chaos for France.”
Recent weeks of school protests have already been marked by significant violence, leaving several demonstrators and more than 900 police officers injured.
In one serious incident, a teenage student lost one hand and sustained injuries to several fingers on the other after being struck by a stun grenade.
France’s internal police watchdog is investigating at least two dozen allegations of police misconduct.
Who is taking part in the protests?
Students will be joined by trade unionists and remnants of the Yellow Vests (“Gilets jaunes”) movement, which held mass weekly demonstrations from November 2018 to June 2020. Initially sparked by rising fuel prices, the movement later expanded into broader protests against the high cost of living and economic inequality.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the hard-left France Unbowed (La France insoumise, or LFI), has backed the student protests and participated in a demonstration on Tuesday.
The government has accused LFI of inflaming public discontent, a claim the party denies.
Student protests in France: Schools shut as unrest grows
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