Montrealers warn against complacency amid French protests

Montrealers took to the streets on Saturday to express solidarity with high school students in France who protesters say face “disgusting” conditions.

Since mid-September, secondary school students in France have taken to the streets calling for education reform, and saying that conditions in their schools have worsened dramatically after the summer holidays. They say the school is under-resourced and understaffed.

“No one has to work this hard to do what they want to do in life and the students in France, all they want to do is study,” Amara Grant, a young Montrealer, told Global News at the protest in Phillips Square on Saturday.

This movement later developed to protest the high cost of living and criticize social welfare funding.

Similar protests have also sprung up across Europe, including in Greece, Belgium and Albania.

Protesters in Montreal say they support students overseas, but also want to reassert people’s rights in Quebec.

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“I think society in Quebec like in France is heading towards the right wing, more oppression and threatening past social gains in terms of freedom,” Yves Hupé told Global News.

“The vision of society that we defend actually applies to France, but it also applies to Quebec.”

Activists say young people around the world are struggling with the cost of living and other crises that should not hinder their ability to achieve their future goals.

“The system we have right now isn’t working for us, we can’t afford to feed ourselves, we can’t afford an apartment, we can’t afford anything right now,” Rebecca Bibeau told Global News at the demonstration.

But they also worry about confrontations between protesters and police.

French officials said there were at least 166 arrests at demonstrations across the country Saturday. Thousands of arrests have occurred since the protests began and hundreds more injured.

The Associated Press reported that police used tear gas to push back people wearing head coverings and masks and threw fireworks and other objects at officers in Paris. A large number of riot police were deployed in the area.

President Emmanuel Macron on Friday called for calm. “There is a constitutional right to protest and express oneself,” he said in Brussels. “But this right carries with it the need for respect. Respect for others, respect for property, and therefore a commitment not to insult or destroy.”

But activists in Montreal say allegations of police brutality are also making headlines.

“When they tried to protest and tried to change their situation, the country’s education system, they were beaten by the police,” Grant said.

Amid these tensions, Montrealers say the Canadian government cannot afford to be complacent, and they will continue to attack elected officials.

“We are the people, we outnumber you, you have to listen to us,” Bibeau said.

– With files from Phil Carpenter of Global News and The Associated Press

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