France is in the midst of a wave of high-school student protests that began in mid-to-late September and have escalated into widespread blockades, clashes, and school closures. The unrest is concentrated on lycées (upper secondary schools for ages roughly 15–18) and has spread from Paris suburbs to cities including Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Lille, Toulouse, and Montpellier.Education Minister Édouard Geffray said 400–500 of France’s roughly 3,700 high schools would be fully or partly closed on Monday, 5 October, because security conditions were not met.
That is comparable to Friday’s figure; earlier in the week, hundreds more schools faced disruption or blockades. On Monday the education ministry reported protests or disruptions at 413 schools. Twenty-four schools have been burned or ransacked since the protests began. A national day of demonstrations and further blockades is planned for Tuesday.The main grievances are teacher shortages and unreplaced absences (students report going weeks or months without instruction in core subjects), overcrowded classes (often 35 or more), dilapidated buildings (leaks, poor facilities, inadequate adaptation to heat), long school days, and unequal conditions that hit poorer suburbs hardest.
The movement started around 17 September at a lycée in Créteil, outside Paris, in support of striking teachers over staffing and resources, then broadened. It coincides with the government’s draft 2027 budget, which includes large overall savings and an education spending rise (about 1.7% to roughly €65.5 billion excluding pensions) that is below inflation, along with planned reductions in permanent teacher posts. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has directed ministers to prioritize filling long-term absences and unfilled posts and to produce proposals on the students’ main demands by the end of the month; student unions have called the steps insufficient.
Violence has been significant.
Interior Ministry and AFP figures put arrests at more than 5,000 since late September / early last week, about 85% of them minors. Roughly 78 education staff and at least 170 students have been injured, along with hundreds of police officers (one report cited around 600). Property damage is estimated in the tens of millions of euros. Incidents include barricades, burning bins, attacks on schools and vehicles, and projectiles thrown at police, who have used tear gas and other crowd-control measures. On Monday a 15-year-old in Lens lost a hand and part of his lower arm after a police stun grenade detonated; local authorities said 200–250 protesters had been throwing objects. A teacher in La Ciotat was reportedly struck and doused with gasoline. The government says restoring order is the priority, acknowledges some grievances as legitimate, and has accused far-left activists of hijacking parts of the movement. Protesters and some unions accuse police of disproportionate force; internal inquiries have been opened into at least a few alleged cases.University campuses have also seen some blockades. The situation remains fluid ahead of Tuesday’s planned actions, with the government under political pressure ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
