A wave of demonstrations by French high‑school students over excessive timetables, teacher shortages and crumbling school buildings has spiralled into what officials describe as “urban violence”. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu convened a crisis cabinet meeting on Thursday, ordering ministers to scrap travel plans so the government can focus on the unrest that began in the Paris region last week and has now spread nationwide. Police reported roughly 900 blockades, demonstrations and related incidents outside lycées, with more than 160 schools forced to close and access to about 30 university campuses disrupted. Nearly 3,000 pupils aged 15‑18 have been detained since the protests began, including 1,949 on Thursday alone, while over 300 officers and dozens of firefighters, teachers and students have suffered injuries.
Scale of the Demonstrations
The interior ministry said that, as of Thursday, about 900 demonstrations, blockades and related incidents were under way outside high schools across France. More than 160 lycées have been shut down entirely, and roughly 30 university campuses – including sites in Paris and Marseille – have seen their access blocked by protesters. In Nantes, a fire caused extensive damage to a school building, leaving it closed for a month while repairs are carried out. The scale of the disruption prompted the prime minister to cancel all ministerial travel and call an emergency cabinet meeting to coordinate the response.
Student Grievances and Police Response
Students cite overloaded timetables, overcrowded classrooms, a chronic shortage of teachers and intolerable heat during recent heatwaves as their core complaints. A 16‑year‑old in Caen, Maelle, told AFP that she wished those setting rubbish bins alight would protest “with words”. In Strasbourg, a 17‑year‑old described classrooms with 35 pupils each, insufficient toilets, leaking roofs and a cramped cafeteria, blaming the state for “zero budget, zero resources”.
Riot police have been deployed to confront the increasingly violent crowds. Injuries have mainly resulted from hurled objects, but police‑fired riot‑control projectiles have also caused harm. The interior ministry announced an internal investigation after accusations of excessive force and brutality against three pupils. Rubbish bins have been set ablaze outside many schools, and more serious arson attempts have been reported inside some buildings. In Lille, youths in black hoodies destroyed a bus stop, while in Marseille attackers tried to ignite fires inside two schools, splashing a teacher with petrol in one incident.
Government and Political Reactions
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu warned that the upsurge in violence makes it “virtually impossible to maintain the continuity of public education” and endangers staff and pupils. Education minister Édouard Geffray is scheduled to meet pupil representatives on Friday to discuss their demands. The government has accused the left‑wing La France Insoumise (LFI) party of encouraging the protests, citing LFI MPs and mayors – including Bally Bagayoko, the mayor of Saint‑Denis – who have been seen cheering demonstrators. LFI’s 2027 presidential candidate, Jean‑Luc Mélenchon, insisted the party backs “non‑violent methods of struggle” and said his greatest concern is an “unbearable level of police violence against these young people”.
Some teachers have expressed sympathy with the students. Juliette Estiville, a Spanish teacher at a Paris high school, said she joined the blockades to form a barrier between police and pupils, adding that the police response had “disgusted” her.
Why it Matters
The escalation from peaceful sit‑ins to widespread arson, clashes and mass detentions signals a deepening crisis in France’s education system, reflecting broader frustrations over underinvestment in public services. If the government fails to address the root causes – chronic teacher shortages, deteriorating infrastructure and unrealistic workloads – the unrest could persist, disrupting learning for thousands of students and straining police‑community relations nationwide. The outcome of the upcoming talks between officials and pupil representatives may well set a precedent for how France handles future youth‑led protests over social and economic grievances.
