Escalating School Protests
More than 400 students—most of them minors—were taken into custody on Tuesday during nationwide blockades at French high schools. The demonstrations, which began in Paris and spread to more than 400 lycées, stem from overcrowded classrooms and chronic teacher shortages.
At least ten teachers, several students and 48 police officers were reported injured in clashes that saw bins set alight and projectiles hurled at officers. “We’re not here to smash everything up for no reason,” said a 16‑year‑old student on the scene. “We’re here precisely to say that the education system is broken.”
Education Minister Édouard Geffray on X said the right to protest exists but condemned the violence as “indefensible.” Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez told BFMTV that “two‑thirds” of the 440 arrests involved police custody and that the force used was “proportionate.”
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu warned that any further escalation would be “irresponsible,” following the arrest of 164 students the previous day. The unrest overlaps a national walkout by teachers, hospital staff and civil servants pushing for better pay and working conditions.
The protests have drawn attention to the state of France’s education system, with many schools reporting an average class size of 34 students—well above the ministerial limit. Calls for reform have intensified as students and parents voice fatigue over overwork and under‑staffing.
