Greta Thunberg Joins French Student Protests in Saint-Denis

French students protesting deteriorating school conditions received support from Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg on October 13, 2026, as demonstrations spread across the country. Thunberg joined pupils outside Lycee Paul Eluard in Saint-Denis, near Paris, where students are demanding better facilities, sufficient teachers and less overcrowded classrooms.

The demonstrations began in late September, with students blocking entrances to hundreds of high schools using bins and barriers. Their complaints include dilapidated buildings, teacher shortages, overcrowded classes and overloaded schedules, according to reports by Al Jazeera and Yahoo.

Thunberg said young people were being excluded from decisions affecting their lives.

"Young people are not being included in the conversation. Our future is being robbed away from us," Thunberg told AFP.

Tuesday's mobilization included demonstrations in Paris and other French cities, with support from labor unions and the left-wing opposition party France Unbowed. Organizers expected further public rallies on Saturday, October 17, focused on the rising cost of living.

The university student union l’Union also called for action through a message published on X.

"They’re not listening to us, so we’re going to them," the union said.

Education Minister Edouard Geffray said approximately 200 schools were closed on Tuesday, fewer than the previous week. The Education Ministry reported that eight teaching staff members were injured on Monday, primarily in the Paris region and the cities of Bordeaux and Lyon.

In a separate report on Monday, Yahoo cited the ministry as saying that the number of school closures was declining while violence was intensifying.

"The number of school closures is falling... the violence is intensifying," the ministry said.

Authorities have also faced scrutiny over police conduct during the demonstrations. According to France's Ministry of Justice, more than 6,800 people, most of them minors, have been taken into police custody since the movement began. Police have opened investigations into 24 allegations of brutality against protesters.

Reports cited by Yahoo described serious injuries during earlier confrontations, including one young demonstrator who lost a hand after being struck by a police stun grenade, another who lost many teeth after a tear gas canister was fired at close range, and another who lost an eye. Rights groups and students have accused police of using disproportionate force.

Lawyers wearing robes formed a human chain near the Saint-Denis demonstration to protect young protesters amid the allegations of police violence.

Students have also criticized authorities for failing to respond adequately to their proposals. A 19-year-old graphic design student in Paris, identified as Leo, described their frustration to AFP.

"Students aren't being heard enough... not their proposals to authorities and elected officials," Leo said.

He said many young demonstrators were troubled by the police response to the movement.

"disturbed by the level of repression never before seen for a student movement," Leo said.

Meanwhile, a 17-year-old student in Rennes, identified as Naila, said she planned to join Tuesday's demonstration and hoped it would connect with the broader cost-of-living protests scheduled for Saturday.

"converge," Naila said, describing what she hoped would happen between the student demonstrations and the wider rally.

The government has announced plans to deploy approximately 3,000 substitute teachers to the 114 high schools most affected by staff shortages. A government spokeswoman said Monday that assignments had begun, while the national students' union dismissed the measure as insufficient and demanded an additional 10 billion euros, equivalent to approximately $11 billion, for high schools.

The dispute has also raised concerns among families and students who want schools to remain accessible. Some parents have urged protesters to end the blockades, while university students have reported missing classes because of the disruptions.

One mother, identified by the pseudonym Gladys, criticized the school entrances being blocked.

"The blockades are by their very nature undemocratic," Gladys said.

Clara Juillet, a university student in Tours who said she had been unable to attend lessons because of the protests, also objected to the disruption.

"It's shameful to block students who really want to study, by a movement they aren't part of," Juillet said.

French President Emmanuel Macron urged demonstrators to remain calm during remarks at the Paris Motor Show on Monday, saying the students' complaints would require time and discussion.

"These are issues that deserve time, consultations, discussion and respect," Macron said.

Macron repeated the same appeal in comments reported by Yahoo, emphasizing restraint as nationwide demonstrations approached.

"These are issues that deserve time, consultations, discussion, and respect," Macron said.

Separately, authorities reported that fireworks launched through a tube injured three school workers and a police officer in incidents involving schools in Reims, a Paris suburb and Marseille on Monday. Yahoo also reported that a 14-year-old was arrested near Marseille after a middle school headmaster and a teacher were wounded in a hunting-rifle shooting, which police treated as unrelated to the student protests.