Montrealers warn against complacency amid French protests

Montrealers took to the streets Saturday to stand in solidarity with high school students in France who protesters say are facing “detestable” conditions.

Since mid-September, high school students in France have taken to the streets calling for education reform, saying conditions in their schools deteriorated dramatically following the summer break. They say schools are under-resourced and they are experiencing a shortage of staff.

“Nobody should have to work this hard to do what they want to do in life and students in France, all they want to do is learn,” Amara Grant, a young Montrealer, told Global News at the protest at Phillips Square Saturday.

The movement has since grown to protest the high cost of living and critique the social welfare funding.

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

Protesters in Montreal say they stand with the students across the ocean, but also want to reaffirm the rights of people in Quebec.

“I think the society in Quebec like in France is drifting towards the right, more repression and threatening the social gains that have been in the past in terms of freedom,” Yves Hupé told Global News.

“The vision of the society that we defend actually is true for France, but it’s true also for Quebec.”

The activists say young people globally are struggling with the cost of living and other crises that should not inhibit their ability to pursue their future goals.

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

But they also have concerns about confrontations between protesters and police.

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

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

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

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

“When they try to protest and they try to change their state of being, their state education system, they’re getting beat up by the police,” Grant said.

Amid these tensions, Montrealers say the Canadian government should not be complacent, and that they will continue to put the heat on elected officials.

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

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