High school students in France launched protests across major cities on Wednesday (September 30) due to issues such as overcrowded schedules, large class sizes, and teacher shortages. The protests escalated sharply and spread to several main cities, with the Ministry of the Interior reporting that over 600 people were detained nationwide on Wednesday, resulting in 83 police officers and gendarmes being injured.
The cities most heavily impacted by the protests on Wednesday included Saint-Denis in the northern suburbs of Paris, Bordeaux in the southwest, Lyon in the southeast, and Lille in the north.
Politicians from the far-left party “La France Insoumise” showed their support, including Saint-Denis Mayor Bally Bagayoko.
Footage from the scene showed students in Saint-Denis lighting fires outside school gates and gathering around bonfires, while riot police stood guard. In Lyon and Lille, demonstrators threw stones and other objects at police lines, with tear gas being used by the police in Lille to disperse the crowd.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez stated on Wednesday that the wave of protests is rapidly expanding, impacting a total of 356 high schools across France. On that day alone, 625 people were detained, with over 440 people detained the previous day, the majority of whom were minors.
Nuñez condemned the “escalation of violence” outside some schools, criticizing protesters for targeting law enforcement personnel, throwing objects, engaging in violence, insults, attempted arson, and even seven cases of maliciously throwing hydrochloric acid at enforcement officials, which he likened to “urban violence.”
Education Minister Edouard Geffray stated that since the protests began last week, a total of 119 students and staff have been injured, with the staff mainly consisting of principals and teachers. He emphasized, “The top priority is to get students back into the classroom.”
The participation of far-left political figures in the protests, including the violence that occurred, has sparked strong backlash from the ruling coalition and moderates.
President Emmanuel Macron, speaking in Madrid, said, “High schools should be places of openness and knowledge transmission, not places for setting up barricades or burning trash cans.”
Members of the ruling coalition and moderates have accused far-left politicians of attempting to rationalize the violent behaviors in school protests. Interior Minister Nuñez and other officials and political figures condemned far-left groups for inciting students’ emotions through their speech.
Nuñez also pointed out, “We observe the presence of professional agitators in some places, moving from one school to another, inciting high school students and other students to take violent actions.”
Despite official criticism of street violence in France, protesting students continue to point out the various issues within the secondary education system.
Juan, a student at Montbello High School in Lille, told AFP, “We do not endorse vandalism. Taking to the streets is to defend our own rights. We have classes from 8 am to 6 pm every day, which is unreasonable.”
Fadila, a 17-year-old student in Saint-Denis, expressed to Reuters, “There are cockroaches and rats everywhere in the school.” She mentioned that the school’s temperature control facilities are old, making classrooms unbearably hot in summer and freezing in winter.
Another student, Gamze, mentioned that the educational environment in their area is vastly different from that in downtown Paris or rural regions, making it hard to accept.
(Credit to reports from AFP and Reuters for reference)