Greta Thunberg showed up outside a high school in Saint-Denis, just north of Paris, on Tuesday, standing with students in the middle of weeks of clashes that have left more than 6,800 people detained across France since September.
The 23-year-old Swedish activist, known for launching school climate strikes, told reporters the police crackdown on students has been “extremely violent,” according to Reuters. “We are inspired by the young people who are demanding their basic rights,” she said.
The students behind the protests aren’t asking for much that sounds radical: more teachers, better-maintained buildings, and shorter school days. Many complain of schedules running from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and classrooms in disrepair. But the response from the streets has been anything but calm. Protesters have set fires, built barricades, and fought riot police in cities across the country, though organizers say plenty of the demonstrations have stayed peaceful.
Tuesday alone saw roughly 161,500 people march nationwide, including 41,500 in Paris, per Interior Ministry figures. The Education Ministry counted 214 schools shut down.
The violence has already cost one teenager dearly. A 15-year-old boy lost his hand and part of his lower arm in Lens last week after picking up a police dispersal grenade that went off during a demonstration. French authorities have since suspended use of that type of stun grenade.
Washington and Paris weigh in
President Donald Trump put his own spin on the unrest last week, tying it to immigration rather than schools. “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!” he wrote on Truth Social on Oct. 6.
In France, the protests have turned into fuel for next May’s presidential race. Far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon marched with demonstrators in Paris on Tuesday and has accused the government of using excessive force against young people. National Rally leader Marine Le Pen has taken a different line, condemning the violence from protesters and demanding that those responsible for damaging schools pay to fix them.
President Emmanuel Macron has called for restraint and dialogue as the unrest continues, and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has directed ministers to work through students’ demands.
