Dilapidated premises, job cuts and rejection of Parcoursup: this Tuesday, high school students, university students, parents and teachers marched from Garibaldi Square to Thiers Station to make their voices heard against an unresponsive National Education system.
As high school and university mobilization spreads throughout France over the past week, this afternoon, from 2 pm onwards, over a thousand demonstrators gathered at Garibaldi Square. They all had only one goal: to voice together demands that have become urgent for young people.
High school students, university students, teachers’ unions and parent associations marched side by side in a determined atmosphere. The procession walked down Jean-Médecin Avenue towards Nice-Ville Station, flanked by a security arrangement combining law enforcement and CGT marshals to ensure the march proceeded smoothly and prevent any incidents.
Unworthy study conditions
Within the ranks of the procession, anger over the deterioration of study conditions was palpable. Between collapsing ceilings, dilapidated lecture halls, presence of asbestos, rats or cockroaches in schools, the educational community denounces a situation that has become unbearable on a daily basis.
« We increasingly lack resources. It’s dreadful to study in such conditions », warns Sacha Drogoul, co-president of the Student Popular Front. She also points out direct attacks on student life, the freeze or elimination of housing allowances for non-EU students, as well as the project to overhaul the calculation system based on parents’ income which would deprive 200,000 young people of these fundamental aids.
In the crowd, parents came in large numbers to support the youth. For this high school parent, intergenerational solidarity is obvious given current anxieties. « This generation must face immense challenges. Rather than attacking them, we should give them the means to analyze, argue and create something new ». He also points to a gap between traditional school curricula and young people’s real needs, « learning to always repeat the same solutions to the same problems is useless in the face of crises to come. »
But these are not the only concerns. The lack of resources allocated to education, shortage of teachers and support staff, demands have been piling up for several months and converge toward a general exasperation.
« We need more teachers and renovated buildings. We can’t study in such conditions anymore », denounces Allan Clerc, co-organizer of the Young Insubordinate of Nice, recalling recent material incidents that have occurred in certain schools in the city. A finding shared by the president of FCPE in Alpes-Maritimes, Khadija El Ouahabi, for whom the situation has reached a breaking point. « These have been the same demands for years. Now, that’s enough. It’s time for the government to hear the educational community. »
Talking past each other with political power
Beyond material demands, it is the feeling of a widening gap between youth and political decision-makers that dominates. Government announcements regarding teacher job cuts and security responses to blockades continue to fuel discontent.
For Tom Voynnet, federal representative of the High School Union Syndicate (USL), mobilization is a matter of dignity. « We show that youth can rebel to reclaim its rights. » Parents and teachers present emphasize the legitimacy of a spontaneous movement in the face of growing anxiety related to social and environmental crises.
Facing a State deemed deaf and contemptuous, the watchword of Nice’s organizers remains determination. For all the demonstrators present, there is no question of backing down. « We will be in the streets in one way or another until our demands are heard […] It is our duty to fight for ourselves, but also for future high school and university students », concludes Sacha Drogoul.
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