Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg joined French high school students on Tuesday as they protested for better learning conditions, adding her voice to a movement that has spread across the country.
Thunberg, who rose to fame as a teenager leading school strikes for climate action, appeared outside the Paul Eluard high school in Saint-Denis, the largest suburb of Paris. The school has become a symbol of the growing student movement, reported by Agency France Press.
“Young people are not being included in the conversation. Our future is being robbed away from us,” the 23 year old told AFP.
The protests began in late September, when students began demanding action over absent teachers, damaged school buildings and overcrowded timetables. Since then, teenagers have blocked school entrances, stacked rubbish bins and, in some cases, clashed with police.
The movement is supported by trade unions and the far left party France Unbowed. On Tuesday, students planned a march through Paris, with similar demonstrations expected in other French cities.
More than 70,000 people joined last Thursday’s protests, the movement’s largest demonstration so far. Authorities had hoped the protests would calm down before the half-term holidays, but the mobilisation appears to be continuing.
Education Minister Edouard Geffray said around 200 schools were closed on Tuesday, fewer than last week. Some schools near protest routes were also closing to avoid damage.
The students say they feel ignored by the government. Many complain that lessons are disrupted because too many teachers are absent, while others describe crumbling classrooms and schedules packed too tightly.
The protests have mostly remained peaceful, but violence has occasionally broken out. The education ministry said eight school staff members were injured on Monday, mainly in Paris, Bordeaux and Lyon. Authorities also reported injuries in Reims and Marseille after fireworks were fired through tubes.
More than 6,800 people, many of them minors, have been taken into police custody since the protests began. Police have opened internal investigations into 24 allegations of brutality against demonstrators.
President Emmanuel Macron urged calm, saying the students’ concerns deserved “time, consultations, discussion and respect.”
The government has promised to send about 3,000 substitute teachers to the 114 worst affected high schools. So far, 35 per cent have been assigned.
Students are also demanding a 10 billion euro investment in France’s lycees, the upper secondary schools attended by most 15 to 18 year olds.
For many young protesters, the issue is simple: they want to be heard before their school years slip away.
