Dublin, Ireland – Hundreds of thousands of students, parents, and teachers have been marching in several French cities since September 17, demanding better conditions in high schools and universities.
Known as the Mouvement Lycéen (Secondary School Students’ Movement) and with mostly teenagers participating, it has spread rapidly around the country, gaining the support of multiple unions, activism movements, and citizens.
Read more: France protests enter new week as government fails to appease students
“I completely understand their anger. I know these problems are not recent, and that other channels were tried but were completely ignored,” shared an archaeologist and former student of Lycée Jules Ferry in Versailles who requested anonymity, while in conversation with EU Reports.
“It seems to me this is the only way they have left to make the government stop turning a deaf ear,” he added.
The claims are related to infrastructure issues, a shortage of teaching staff, budget cuts, and Parcoursup, France’’s national online platform for applying for higher education, which is described as extremely bureaucratic.
When completing their final year of secondary education, students use Parcoursup to submit their choices for university programmes, preparatory classes, technical degrees, and other post-baccalaureate courses. Each institution then reviews applications, ranks candidates, and confirms offers.
More than a week of collective rejection
Per Le Monde, the Interior Ministry counted around 260,000 people marching on Tuesday, October 6 alone through the streets of Paris, Marseille, Toulouse, Nantes, and Lyon, among others. This marked one of the year’s biggest mobilizations.
Yet, some student organizations are pointing out that the number of participants was higher, reaching more than 400,000 citizens.
On October 7, around 80 campuses across France remained blocked by student protests, according to the Student Union.
In Paris Rives de Seine, a technological institute at Université Paris Cité, peaceful actions have taken place for the first time in over 40 years, led by the local union Écume, which is affiliated with the Student Union.
“This blockade is part of a broader wave across campuses in Île-de-France and all over the country. Today, over 90% of universities are blocked, and that number keeps rising,” Adèle, an Écume representative, told EU Reports.
“So far, we have won no victories regarding our demands. The only response from the government has been very aggressive police repression and half-measures aimed solely at breaking our momentum,” she added.
The union leader also noted that universities are using administrative measures to stop students from joining the protests, such as keeping attendance mandatory during online classes and campus lockdowns.
During the past few days, some of those gatherings have culminated in confrontations between demonstrators and authorities. In some cases, police used tear gas during the clashes.
Interior Minister Laurent Núñez declared last week that around 700 officers, 200 students and 90 professors were injured on October 6, as more than 6,000 people ended up arrested.
Some human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International France, are also questioning the safety guarantees and the disproportionate reaction from authorities against the minors participating in the rallies.
Concerns intensified following a severe incident on October 5, when a 15-year-old student lost his hand after a grenade explosion during clashes with police in the city of Lens.
“This repression aims to stop us, but it is clearly not working. Even today, there were massive student gatherings, and we will keep going until our ten demands are applied in every university and high school across France,” Adèle added.
A political crossfire
French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu addressed Parliament on October 8, arguing about a concerning increase in “ultra-violence that has arrived at the doorstep of high schools.”
“In a functional democracy, we cannot allow any room for tolerance of violence. Burning down a high school does not improve the state of buildings. Lynching a teacher does not help replace them,” he stated.
Lecornu also claimed that the mobilizations were the product of a manipulation marked by a “political agenda” ahead of the 2027 elections and conducted by the left-wing party, La France Insoumise – LFI (France Unbowed).
“Accusing the party of ‘manipulation’ is a classic reflex from a cornered government. It is also a very patronizing view to assume young people cannot think for themselves and are easily manipulated,” argued Clément Dubois, an LFI activist, to EU Reports.
“The government has no political solution to offer. They create disorder and repression, then blame us. They use gaslighting as a regular strategy, creating immense anger and resentment,” Dubois added.
Other politicians also denounced the extreme repression against students and rejected the administration’s stance. “The police violence that is crashing down on the protesting French youth is unacceptable,” Marine Tondelier, leader of the Ecologist party, stated on X.
“This government and the Interior Minister bear a heavy responsibility in this situation,” she added.
The political reaction also crossed borders as United States President Donald Trump wrote in Truth Social: “What’s happening in France is nothing less than out of control mass migration. This isn’t about schools, this is about Islam wanting to take over a once great Country!”
In response, left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon fired back on X, accusing external figures of feeding a distorted account:
“We must warn Trump that Madame [Marine] Le Pen is feeding him a fictionalized narrative of the causes of violence in France,” Mélenchon wrote. “As we verified today in Paris and several French cities, it is a police force that no longer answers to anyone that provokes, attacks, injures, and mutilates young protesters.”
As demands persist, further demonstrations are planned for the coming days as figures like climate activist Greta Thunberg are joining the students’ cause.
Featured image: Paolo Carozzino via Instagram
Manifestation des lycéens
High School students protest
Paris 06.10.2026
