Greta Thunberg Cheers French Protests Turning Violent: Of Course We’re Gonna Revolt
Greta Thunberg stood outside a high school in Saint-Denis and told French student protesters the world is watching and she is proud of them. In a video from the scene she told one young man we stand behind you we support you. When he replied oh really she answered yes. The whole world is following what you’re doing. I’m incredibly proud of the French students.
She went further. Young people all over the world especially in France are leading by example showing what young people all over the world should do because young people are being neglected. What do you expect young people to do? Of course we’re gonna revolt of course we’re gonna rise up so it should have been expected. And that the police are now meeting it with such violence and politicians are meeting it as if it’s something unexpected or that young people are destroying things just shows that they are living in a completely different reality.
Thunberg then called for a broad coalition. All the movements now need to be united whether it is students movement workers movement migrants rights movement climate movement. We all need to stand united because we are facing the same enemy which is this extremely destructive system which is not working to our benefit and which is incompatible I would say with human rights and humanity as a whole. She accused police of extremely violently protecting our already extremely violent business as usual and said it shows everything about them and who they are really protecting. They are supposed to be protecting young people they are supposed to be protecting their human rights.
The remarks came days before student blockades and marches in France spilled into wider unrest with looting arson and clashes that left shops burned cars torched and more than a thousand people arrested.
Thunberg framed the revolt as expected and necessary while police tried to contain the disorder. Her comments place her firmly on the side of the students who chose to rise up against the system she calls destructive.