French police clash with high school protesters demanding change

Students are mobilizing over decrepit buildings, understaffing and overcrowding as the government scrambles to contain nationwide protests. On Tuesday, hundreds of thousands took to the streets. Police before charging a crowd in Paris on Oct. 6, 2026. (Lily Radziemski/Courthouse News) PARIS (CN) — Clouds of tear gas floated around the Place de la Nation on Tuesday during “Act III” of France’s student protest movement, which drew hundreds of thousands of people nationwide in its biggest mobilization yet. Students are calling for immediate action to address a range of issues, from chronic understaffing to decrepit buildings and overcrowded classrooms. Parcoursup, the official higher education web application platform, has also come under scrutiny for its long delays and lack of transparency in the selection process. Videos of rodents scurrying through hallways, flooded bathrooms and holes in school ceilings have gone viral online. Jeanne, a high schooler in the northern Paris suburb Saint-Denis, attended the protest with a family member and her colleagues. She has experienced this all firsthand. “In the suburbs, we have ceilings that fall, it leaks when it rains, and we have 35 to 37 people per class,” she explained. “We have the application [Parcoursup], and unfortunately it discriminates against students from working class neighborhoods who are considered less strong than students from Paris.” Lucile Barberton, a teacher who has worked in a range of different positions throughout her career, agreed the inequalities are palpable between schools in the capital and the suburbs. “I’m very attached to the public [school system] and I’ll keep [my kids] in those schools,” she said. “But I see a lot of families are looking to put their kids in public schools.” The Place de la Nation during high school student protests on Oct. 6, 2026, when demonstrators clashed with police. (Lily Radziemski/Courthouse News) On Tuesday afternoon in Paris, police blocked off the Boulevard Voltaire as protesters marched en masse. Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise” blasted from a speaker as people walked to the beat. But further down the road, people started to emerge from the Place de la Nation — a plaza that acted as the demonstration’s ending point — with red, teary eyes and scarves covering their faces. One girl held a cardboard sign that read “Too young to be listened to, but old enough to be gassed.” Ever since the protests began on Sept. 17, the police have come under fire for using excessive force against teenagers. According to the Ministry of Justice, roughly 5,000 people have been arrested since protests began, and the vast majority of them are minors. On Monday, a 15-year-old’s hand was mutilated by a police grenade in Lens; however, whether he was hit by the weapon or picked it up has not been officially confirmed. “I have nightmares about [French President Emmanuel] Macron and the police,” another sign on Tuesday read. Police blockaded streets surrounding the Place de la Nation as the sound of fireworks and crowd-control grenades echoed through the air. Casseurs — people who attend protests for the sake of provoking violence — threw rocks at units inside the barrier, and police charged the groups. “What we want is for this movement to take place peacefully, for there to be a democratic expression by young people, and for it to be structured and organized so that everything goes as smoothly as possible for our children,” said Mustafa Ozcelik, the vice president of the FCPE union for parents. “Since it is, after all, about the future and the safety of our children.” "Police partout, justice nulle part," translating into "Police everywhere, justice nowhere," scribbled on a metro during high school student protests in Paris on Oct. 26, 2026. (Lily Radziemski) The movement started out small. On Sept. 17, teachers from the Saint-Exupéry high school in the suburbs of Paris staged a walkout. Students joined in with their own demands, and in t