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Gilets jeunes? France’s school protests

October 7, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Gilets jeunes? France’s school protests

On a single day in late October, more than a quarter of a million people took to the streets across France in protests that began with high school students blocking the entrances to their schools. By the time the marches reached Place de la République in Paris, over a thousand secondary schools had been blockaded or touched by violence, police had fired tear gas at protesters, and one student had lost a hand after picking up a police grenade. The protests, which started in a single school in Clichy just outside Paris in September, had snowballed into a nationwide movement involving parents, teachers, union workers, and university students acting in solidarity.

What the students are demanding

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (01:36) **Protests Erupt Across France** - Over a quarter of a million people participate in school protests, with blockades and violence at more than a thousand secondary schools.
  • 2 (03:33) **Escalating Violence and Police Response** - Protests turn violent, with public property burned, school entrances set on fire, and heavy-handed police tactics including tear gas and flashball guns.
  • 3 (04:08) **Students' Grievances: From Timetables to Broader Anxiety** - The protests reflect a long list of specific complaints and a wider national discontent.
  • 4 (05:03) **Government Response: A "Moment of Internal Democracy"** - Prime Minister Sébastien Le Corneau announces half-day school closures to allow student councils to air grievances locally.
  • 5 (06:17) **Political Divisions Play Out Over Protests** - The far right accuses the far left of infiltrating student groups and fueling violence; the far left accuses the government of a heavy-handed police crackdown.
  • 6 (07:26) **Outlook: Protests May Die Down, But Broader Discontent Remains** - Half-term may cool student protests, but underlying anger over the cost of living and fuel prices is unlikely to fade.
  • 7 (09:18) **The Cornell Seven Case: A New Campus Sexual Assault Scandal** - Cornell University students rally in solidarity with Jane Doe, who accuses seven men of drugging and raping her at a fraternity party in October 2024.

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Show Notes

What started as a small protest about conditions of a school and of schooling has mushroomed, and tapped into national anxieties that may prove hard to tame. In the context of the “Cornell 7” case we examine Title IX, the statute that should protect students—but that is failing. And how peddling superstitions to financiers is big business in India.

Guests and host:

  • Sophie Pedder, Paris bureau chief
  • Stevie Hertz, US policy correspondent
  • Abhishek Kumar, India writer
  • Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

  • France protests, French politics
  • Cornell 7, Title IX, sexual assault
  • India, finance, astrology, superstition

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