France cracks down on student protests

French students and their families have faced a heavy police presence since September. The government has deployed 70,000 officers to the streets. This marks one of the largest security responses to a protest movement in recent history. The crackdown has resulted in a high number of detentions and injuries among young people.

By October 14, police had placed 7,950 individuals in custody. Eighty-five percent of these detainees were minors. Another 2,700 people were taken into custody after protests on October 17. Police made an additional 1,000 arrests on October 25. The total number of people detained since the movement began has approached 11,650.

Injuries have been severe. A 14-year-old named Eden suffered a fractured jaw and lost teeth after a tear gas grenade hit him. A 16-year-old named Mael lost sight in one eye from a suspected rubber bullet impact. A 15-year-old named Evan had a hand blown off by a stun grenade. These incidents highlight the physical toll of the police response on the student demographic.

The protests stem from deteriorating conditions in schools and universities. In Acoua, Mayotte, parents and staff blocked the Cite du Nord secondary school on August 31. The school is built for 900 pupils but holds 2,300. Students report cramped classrooms, poor ventilation, and unsanitary toilets. Similar complaints exist in suburbs of Paris.

In Sevran, students at Blaise-Cendrars secondary school have reported water leaks and mold since 2024. Toilets are often unusable, and furniture is scarce. At Marcelin-Berthelot secondary school in Pantin, windows no longer open, a problem during heatwaves that reach 40C. In Bagnolet, staff at Politzer secondary school learned in late September that the water was unsafe to drink, despite tests in June showing it was safe.

Financial data underscores the strain on the education system. The education ministry reported that 20.2 million teaching hours were not delivered in state secondary schools in 2024-25. Fifteen million of these lost hours were due to absent teachers who were not replaced. Lucas Chancel, a French economist, noted that government spending per student has declined by 20 percent since 2017.

President Emmanuel Macron met with 20 students on October 23. He promised to reform the university entrance platform. He did not address the students' key demands regarding infrastructure and funding. He has pledged to ban protests and accused the far left of trying to bring down the republic.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has asked the political left to choose a side. He framed the choice as being with the republic and police or with rioters. Far-right politicians have called for powers to strip citizenship from some residents. They have described protesters as hordes of thugs of foreign origin. The government is using the unrest to position itself as the defender of public order against the far right.

Poverty rates in France are the highest since the 1990s. Nine million 800,000 people live under the official poverty line. Oxfam states that 53 French billionaires own as much wealth as nearly half the population. The government is waiting for the movement to weaken or die out rather than addressing the underlying economic issues.