Student protests at Paris 3 university

On a dozen meters in front of the Sorbonne-Nouvelle university, also known as Paris 3, bins and crates are piled up, with tags and posters covering the courtyard and surrounding walls. Posters reading "La fac est à nous" (The university is ours) are attached to the fences, while banners supporting the student movement are displayed, referencing police infiltration attempts and the role of Snapchat in organizing the protests.

Preparation for the national demonstration

On the day before the national demonstration called for October 13 by the youth social movement, students at Sorbonne-Nouvelle organized a blockage and an assembly in front of their university. An elderly passerby stopped to encourage the few students gathered, saying, "Good luck for the demonstration!" Lucas, a master's student in literature-philosophy at Paris 3, nodded, confirming he and his classmates would be among the demonstrators on October 13.

Growing movement across France

Gatherings are taking place everywhere in France for this fifth act of the student movement. Unions are present alongside the youth. In Paris, the intersyndical march against the austerity budget has been attached with a different route. Lucas, active in Poing Levé, a youth organization, hopes that mobilization by entire sectors will ensure the continuity of the movement and strengthen connections between students, workers, and others.

Student assemblies and administrative closures

In his faculty, the assemblies have gathered an increasingly large number of students over the past two weeks of the student movement. "500 people came to the assembly last week. This shows that this student movement was intended to spread to this university," Lucas recounts. He quickly relays an email from the administration announcing an early administrative closure for the demonstration on Tuesday, October 13.

Discrepancies in closure figures

On October 13, the day of the demonstration, the universities are indeed at a standstill, as at Paris 3, says the Student Union to Basta. "90% of the universities are blocked or closed," announces Félix Stive, spokesperson for the federation, on 70 French universities. The Ministry of Higher Education contests these figures, announcing instead that 35% of establishments were disturbed, including blockages, occupations, and administrative closures.

Expanding the movement to new campuses

From Solidaires Étudiant-es, it is said that "a dozen campuses blocked with good successes in Dijon, Nantes where everything is blocked. Even Polytechnique is blocked, which is historical," reports Lucie Clamens, spokesperson for the student union. She also lists new university occupations in Montpellier, while others have been continuing for several days as in Toulouse.

Mobilization spreading to depoliticized campuses

In cities like Lyon, the mobilization of campuses is spreading day by day, up to the Institute of Political Studies and the École normale supérieure blocked on October 13 in the morning. The national demonstration day on Tuesday, October 6, seems to have marked a turning point for the spread of the movement to universities. In Grenoble, depoliticized campuses have joined the movement after watching from afar.

Police repression and administrative closures

On the asphalt in front of Paris 3, a hopscotch is drawn with an aerosol. In each square, it is written: 1 CRS, 2 CRS, 3 CRS, 4 CRS... A week ago, Monday, October 5, the police were called by the university administration to enter the university while an assembly was taking place there to end the blockage. On videos viewed by Basta, dozens of helmeted police officers dismantle tables and chairs and push back students, under the screams of the latter.

Police violence and staff intervention

Kamil, an audiovisual technician and CGT union member, says he was hit and gassed. "I put myself between the students and the CRS to prevent the overflows, the injured, because we have clearly seen what has been happening for weeks. As a university staff member, I did not want university students to be hit, maltreated, violated by the police. So I put myself between the two, showing my professional card and repeating that I worked here," he begins.

Aftermath of police intervention

The intrusion of the police forces "has left psychological scars," says Lucas. The violence of the intervention, followed by a net of nearly four hours, has discouraged some from continuing to mobilize, laments Serge. "This morning, several people who would have wanted to support us said: 'Actually, it's too dangerous, I won't get close to the university.' They wanted to scare people, and it worked."

Administrative closures as repression

Beyond the police intrusions on campuses, the administrative closures weigh on the student movement. Félix Stive, spokesperson for the Student Union, denounces the "systematic recourse" to this practice, generalized since the youth mobilizations against the pension reform in 2024. He singles out "abusive closures in Paris, in university centers that are not even mobilized."

Online classes and legal challenges

In the same way, Lucie Clamens notes that online classes are a practice against which teachers are increasingly less willing to rise. She emphasizes that in online classes, the requirement of attendance, as well as assessments, are contrary to the education code. The Student Union has circulated a sample email to students to avoid sanctions, but the government's stance supports these practices.

Continuing mobilization despite closures

On the ground, the students do not mince words: these closures and online classes indeed have an impact. "Yes, it reduces the number of people present and mobilized," admits Esther, a master's student in literature-philosophy, also a militant at Poing Levé. "But there is still a real determination. Because gathering in front of the university, while the university is closed, testifies to something strong," she nuances.

Staff solidarity and strike participation

As on previous days, the students of Paris 3 have gathered in an assembly in front of the university before going to the demonstration. On the part of the staff, the strike was renewed unanimously the day before. As last week, 180 declared themselves on strike, reports Kamil. Since the beginning of the movement, the number of CGT members within this university has also increased.

Using school holidays to sustain the movement

While the government communicates on an "exhaustion" of the movement and relies on the school holidays of students, the students interviewed refuse to be discouraged. "With the big demonstration on Saturday, October 17, the idea is to bring together students, high school students and workers. It is a self-organized date and it really speaks," believes Esther.

Doctoral students join the movement

This week, a new category tries to mobilize: doctoral students. On the Saclay plateau, about forty doctoral students from a dozen universities and schools have gathered for the first time in an assembly on October 12. Three main measures are included in their motion: an end to police violence, the adoption of ten emergency measures, and an alert on the lack of resources for public research.

Doctoral students' grievances and coordination

Nina, a doctoral student in economics, explains how she became the spokesperson for this small coordination. She recounts her experience in a demonstration in Dijon, where she provided medical care to injured protesters. Indignant at these violences, she launched a call for a demonstration in Paris, which quickly grew into a coordination effort with other doctoral students on the Saclay plateau.