‘Children are losing eyes and teeth in France protests – police are out of control’

Protests have erupted at high schools across France against underfunding in education, drawing enormous crowds of students and teachers alike.

The demonstrations have at times turned violent – hundreds have been injured since the riots began in late September.

But another phenomenon is swelling across the country – police brutality directed at young people.

Anouk Vandecasteele, an English teacher at a school in Lille, is one of the many educators to have joined the growing student protests.

‘There is definitely a form of police brutality which has been previously unseen because it has not been directed towards young people before,’ she told Metro.

‘The fact that today they are injuring kids is unacceptable. That’s one of the reasons why we are there.’ 

Demonstrations have erupted all over the country (Picture: Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP via Getty Images) Students are protesting the underfunding of education (Picture Miguel Medina / AFP via Getty Images)

Earlier this week, at a 250-strong protest in nearby Lens, a 15-year-old reportedly had his hand ‘blown off’ when a stun grenade thrown by riot police detonated after he picked it up.

Anouk has also heard reports of students losing eyes and of a 14-year-old who lost teeth after their jaw was broken.

She said: ‘Of course during the gilets jaunes and other strikes many activists have been wounded, but injuring kids is unheard of. It’s a bit scary.

‘People who are currently demonstrating and people who are blocking the schools are just kids. They are unarmed; they just want to be heard. It is time for the government to listen to them.’

She told Metro: ‘I’m ready for anything to make sure that my students have the same opportunities that I had. I feel outraged and at the same time I feel like I’m never going to give up and I think that’s how the students feel too. Above all I feel proud.’ 

The teacher attended the largest demonstration so far, on October 6, with the number of participants nationwide rising to more than 250,000.

Anouk said the police response has been like nothing she has seen before (Picture: Reuters)

She said she had multiple reasons for joining the protest. One is to protect her students, while the other is to amplify their voice.

‘The students’ movement is not only about claiming their rights and asking for decent conditions; they are questioning the role of young people in this country while there is lots of unemployment,’ she added.

The issue of underfunding is still central to the cause. Anouk said she has seen leaking ceilings, class sizes of up to 38 pupils, and classrooms without enough tables and chairs for students.

She said: ‘They need help and they need to be encouraged, but how can you? 

‘That’s why teachers are joining the students; they are exhausted from pretending we are managing, and we are not.’ 

Anouk also thinks that demonstrators’ violence has been overrepresented and at times misinformed. ‘I’m not saying it doesn’t exist, but it’s a small percentage of what is happening.

Anouk said violent protest is a ‘small percentage’ of what’s happening in France (Picture: Reuters) The teacher said the demonstrations are being misrepresented (Picture: Muhammed Said Tako/Anadolu via Getty Images)

‘It’s like when you are a football supporter [in the UK]; you don’t want to be associated with hooliganism, and I think that’s what’s being done with those kids. 

‘They are peaceful; they are asking for things with intelligence.  We cannot associate the movement with the occasional acts of violence.

‘All the kids we’ve seen are kids worried about their future who want to start a conversation with their government, and so far the government has not replied.’

Underfunding poses a serious threat to social mobility in France; a child born and schooled in a deprived neighbourhood there has less chance of escaping their socioeconomic background than in most other developed nations, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 

The university admissions system, Parcoursup – which rates schools’ reputation and students’ grades – has also been the focus of some students’ frustrations.

According to Anouk, the move to part coursework-based assessment from 100% exam-based has also contributed to this, as overcrowded classrooms with fewer resources perform worse in continuous assessment than the previous ‘equalising’ exams.

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