‘Young President’ Macron faces a bitter end···French youth take to the streets as his term draws to a close - 경향신문

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On the 17th (local time), at a protest in Lyon, France, against poor educational conditions and the cost of living, a demonstrator holds a placard bearing a photo of French President Emmanuel Macron in front of a burning tourist information kiosk. AP Yonhap News

Emmanuel Macron, elected in 2017 at age 39 as the youngest president of France and a symbol of ‘generational change’ and political renewal, is facing fierce pushback from young people at the end of his term. Student protests that began over educational conditions and the cost of living have broadened as citizens angry about inequality joined in, and even the ‘Yellow Vests’ movement is signaling it may take part. As dissatisfaction has mounted over fiscal austerity and over education and welfare policies, criticism is growing that Macron, who came to power at a young age, has failed to actually improve the lives of young people.

On the 17th (local time), protesters and police face off in Paris, France. Xinhua News Agency

The French daily Le Monde reported on the 17th (local time) that the relationship between President Macron and the younger generation had effectively reached a breaking point.

According to the government, 550,000 people took part in protests held nationwide that day, while organizers put the number at 800,000. By the government count, it was the largest since the 6th, when 260,000 turned out. What began at a high school in northern Paris with demands to resolve teacher shortages and improve facilities has widened as citizens protesting the cost of living and inequality joined in. The movement that rattled the Macron government in 2018the ‘Yellow Vests’, who rose up over fuel tax hikes and inequalityas well as climate activists and farmers also joined the marches.

Clashes with police, arson against vehicles and public facilities, and looting of shops occurred during the protests. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that so far at least 1,800 people had been arrested. The protests are spreading beyond France to other European countries, including Belgium, Spain, Portugal, and Greece.

On the 17th (local time), a vehicle burns at a protest site in Paris, France. Xinhua News Agency

The distance between President Macron and young people had been wide from the very start of his tenure. Le Monde noted that Macron “came to power with a message of social liberation, but his actual base of support was closer to young professionals and wealthy senior executives than to students.” In the first round of the 2017 presidential election, Macron finished third among 1824-year-old voters, behind Jean-Luc Melenchon and Marine Le Pen. In the 2024 parliamentary elections, fewer than one in ten young voters chose candidates from the Macron camp. The symbolism of being a young leader did not translate into substantive support from the young.

Policy grievances accumulated from the beginning of his presidency contributed to the youth exodus. In 2018, Macron told a young unemployed gardener something to the effect that he could “find a job just by crossing the street,” drawing criticism that he did not understand the reality facing young people. During the COVID-19 pandemic, criticism also continued that support for young people who experienced school closures and social isolation was insufficient. Macron tried to communicate with the young through social media, but last year he made remarks to the effect that he “neither likes nor understands adolescents,” revealing his distance.

Conflicts over education policy also recurred. The high school reform pushed by then-Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer in 2018 proceeded without sufficient consultation and was criticized for failing to reflect voices from the field. During the rollout of ‘Parcoursup’, a college-application platform introduced in France and comparable to the rolling and regular admissions systems used in Korea, students and teachers also pushed back. With as many as seven education ministers replaced in the past four years, critics said policy consistency and attention from the government were lacking.

On the 17th (local time), protesters hold a rally in Paris, France, against soaring prices. The protests, which have spread across France, include middle and high school students and university students at the core, joined by past ‘Yellow Vests’ demonstrators, climate activists, and farmers. AFP Yonhap News

Discontent among the young is spilling over from education into fiscal and welfare policy. Public debt in France exceeds 115% of gross domestic product (GDP), and the budget deficit last year was 5.1% of GDP. To reduce the deficit to below 5% this year, the government has moved to cut welfare spending, drawing criticism that investment in the living conditions of young people and in education has been pushed aside. A prime example is the reduction in housing benefits for young and low-income people that took effect in July.

After pushing back the retirement age through pension reform, and since Russia invaded Ukraine emphasizingdefense and service obligations, the government has also been accused of increasing the burden on the young. Last month, the French government introduced a 10-month paid military service system. Former economy minister Bruno Le Maire recently said spending related to pensioners had increased while education spending had stagnated, adding, “do not be surprised to see students take to the streets.”

The French sociologist Camille Puni wrote in a contribution to Le Monde that “President Macron and his government have wanted docile, compliant youth for the past decade,” and that “when the government encourages youth participation, it presents institutional frameworks such as military service, but when young people act by putting forward their own demands such as improving educational conditions, it treats this as illegal behavior or a threat to public order.”

The Elysee said President Macron will deliver a national address on the afternoon of the 18th. Before that, he will hold preliminary meetings with the prime minister and cabinet ministers.