{"id":501,"date":"2022-05-22T18:00:26","date_gmt":"2022-05-22T16:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/?p=501"},"modified":"2024-02-19T09:06:25","modified_gmt":"2024-02-19T08:06:25","slug":"why-do-the-french-love-to-demonstrate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/why-do-the-french-love-to-demonstrate\/","title":{"rendered":"Why do the French love to demonstrate?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In France, protesting is almost a <strong>national pastime<\/strong>. The French love to demonstrate, whether it&rsquo;s against new government policies or in support of a cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why do the French feel so strongly about protesting? And what are some of the most famous protests in French history?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this blog post, we&rsquo;ll take a look at the history and reasons behind France&rsquo;s love of demonstrations. Stay tuned!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why do the French feel so strongly about protesting?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The French have a long and proud history of civil unrest and uprisings, from the French Revolution to the protests of May 1968. There are many reasons why the French feel so strongly about protesting, including their <strong>love of freedom<\/strong> and <strong>democracy<\/strong>, their <strong>distrust of authority<\/strong>, and their <strong>desire for social change<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The French have a long and rich history of protesting. Some of the most famous demonstrations in French history include the French Revolution, the protests of May 1968, and the Yellow Vests protests in 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-large-font-size\" style=\"color:#60bceb\"><strong>Do you like learning French with videos?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Receive <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/learn-french-fun.com\/newsletter\" target=\"_blank\">our free video newsletter<\/a> every Friday in your e-mail box. You will get <strong>3 \u00ab\u00a0Tips &amp; Tricks\u00a0\u00bb<\/strong> on <strong>grammar<\/strong>, <strong>vocabulary<\/strong>, <strong>phonetics <\/strong>or <strong>French culture<\/strong>.<br>\ud83d\udc49\ud83d\udc49 <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/learn-french-fun.com\/newsletter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sign up now!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/learn-french-fun.com\/newsletter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/BLOG-newsletter.jpg\" alt=\"Every Friday afternoon, a French-language video delivered straight to your inbox, with three tips and tricks on the French language.\" class=\"wp-image-1882\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/BLOG-newsletter.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/BLOG-newsletter-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why do the French feel so passionately about protesting?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are some of the reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The French <strong>love freedom and demo<\/strong>cracy, and they believe that protesting is <strong>one way to protect these values<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The French distrust authority, and they see protesting as <strong>a way to hold government officials accountable<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The French desire social change, and they believe that protesting is <strong>one way to bring about this change<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Do you agree with this view? Do you think that protesting and demonstrating in the streets is the right way to make your voice heard?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What are some of the most famous protests in French history?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In France, protesting is a national pastime. Here are some of the most famous protests in French history.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Did you know that the French have a word for \u00ab\u00a0protest?\u00a0\u00bb More than just a form of civil disobedience, protesting is actually considered an <strong>art form<\/strong> in France. And with good reason \u2013 the French have a long and proud history of taking to the streets to speak out against authority. Here are some of the most famous protests in French history:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">French Revolution<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise-1024x725.jpg\" alt=\"French revolution as an example of the love from French to demonstrate\" class=\"wp-image-505\" style=\"width:512px;height:363px\" width=\"512\" height=\"363\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise-1024x725.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise-300x212.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise-768x544.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise-1536x1087.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/revolution-francaise.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u00ab\u00a0La libert\u00e9 guidant le peuple\u00a0\u00bb, Delacroix<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Winter of 1788-89: This was when angry Parisians took to the streets to protest high food prices and poor living conditions. The demonstrators were known as sans-culottes (literally \u00ab\u00a0<em>without breeches<\/em>\u00ab\u00a0), because they dressed in working class clothing instead of the traditional breeches worn by the upper class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The <strong>Tennis Court Oath<\/strong>: In 1789, the National Assembly met at a tennis court in Paris to discuss a new constitution for France. When they were interrupted by the King&rsquo;s order to disperse, they took an oath not to leave until they had finished their work. This event is considered one of the key moments of the French Revolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You want to know more about the French Revolution? Here is a selection of links that might interest you:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/fr.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/R%C3%A9volution_fran%C3%A7aise\">Wikipedia: The French Revolution<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.caminteresse.fr\/histoire\/la-revolution-francaise-en-10-idees-recues-11116823\/\">10 misconceptions about the French revolution<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The protests of May 1968<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/slogans-de-mai-68.jpg\" alt=\"French slogans in may 68 during the student protests\" class=\"wp-image-507\" style=\"width:500px;height:282px\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/slogans-de-mai-68.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/slogans-de-mai-68-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/slogans-de-mai-68-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Slogan during the events of May 68<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>May 1968: This was a series of <strong>student-led prot<\/strong>ests against capitalism, consumerism, and traditional values.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The protesters occupied <strong>universities <\/strong>and <strong>factories<\/strong>, and their slogan were \u00ab\u00a0<strong>l&rsquo;imagination au pouvoir<\/strong>\u00a0\u00bb (imagination to power), \u00ab\u00a0<strong>Interdit d&rsquo;interdire<\/strong>\u00a0\u00bb (Forbidden to forbid), <strong>\u00ab\u00a0Sous les pav\u00e9s, la plage<\/strong>\u00a0\u00bb (under the paving stones, the beach).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the main leaders of the May 68 demonstrations was Daniel Cohn-Bendit, then a young <strong>German <\/strong>student studying in Paris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>General de Gaulle decided to <strong>expel him<\/strong> to Germany for disturbing public order in France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Daniel Cohn-Bendit is still <strong>extremely popular<\/strong> in France and is a member of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. Many French people would have liked to see him run for president in 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>More information on the events of May 68:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mucem.org\/collections\/theme-collection\/mai-68-et-les-oeuvres-contestataires-aux-arts-citoyens\">The legacy of May 68 in the arts<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nouvelobs.com\/societe\/le-quotidien-de-1968\/20080306.OBS3797\/j-ai-vecu-mai-68.html\">Testimonies of French people who lived through May 68<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Yellow Vests (Gilets Jaunes) protests in 2018<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"664\" height=\"443\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/gilets-jaunes.jpg\" alt=\"French Gilets Jaunes in Paris\" class=\"wp-image-508\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/gilets-jaunes.jpg 664w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/gilets-jaunes-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 664px) 100vw, 664px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\u00a9 Julien Muguet pour Le Monde, Paris, France le 16 mars 2019<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Yellow Vests: In 2018, protesters took to the streets wearing yellow vests (<strong>gilets jaunes<\/strong>). The movement started as a protest against an <strong>increase in fuel taxes<\/strong>, but it quickly became a broader protest against inequality and the government&rsquo;s economic policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No French media or political observers had seen this large-scale protest coming. In 2019, after a field survey<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amnesty.fr\/liberte-d-expression\/actualites\/gilets-jaunes-un-bilan-inquietant\"> Amnesty International released a report<\/a> on the number of injuries after one year of Gilets Jaunes. The official figures revealed <strong>2,500 injured on the side of the demonstrators and 1,800 on the side of the police force<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Yellow Vests movement ended largely because of the Covid crisis, which forced the population to remain confined for health reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Read more about the Yellow Vests movement in France:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/fr.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mouvement_des_Gilets_jaunes\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.liberation.fr\/planete\/2018\/12\/07\/les-gilets-jaunes-vus-de-l-etranger-dites-donc-c-est-la-revolution-en-france_1696678\/\">The Yellow Vests seen abroad<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lefigaro.fr\/international\/2018\/12\/02\/01003-20181202ARTFIG00159-gilets-jaunes-vu-de-l-etranger-une-situation-prerevolutionnaire.php\">An air of \u00ab\u00a0civil war\u00a0\u00bb<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>So, are the French just a naturally rebellious people? Do they love to protest for the sake of protesting? Or is there something else going on here?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In my opinion, <strong>it\u2019s a bit of all of the above<\/strong>. The French have a long and proud history of civil unrest and uprisings \u2013 in fact, they even have a word for it (r\u00e9volution).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They feel passionately about protesting because they know that it can make a real difference in their society. And finally, let\u2019s not forget that the French love to argue (just ask any Parisian), so protesting is also seen as a way to have some fun!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What do you think?<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.buymeacoffee.com\/learnfrenchfun\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/bmc-encart-blog.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1885\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/bmc-encart-blog.png 600w, https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/bmc-encart-blog-300x200.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Articles that might interest you: <\/h3>\n\n\n<ul class=\"lcp_catlist\" id=\"lcp_instance_0\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/fr\/pourquoi-les-francais-parlent-ils-si-mal-langlais\/\">Pourquoi les Fran\u00e7ais parlent-ils si mal l&rsquo;anglais ?<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I don&rsquo;t know about you, but I always love when my French students demonstrate in class. It&rsquo;s just so entertaining to see them passionately waving their flags and chanting about whatever it is they&rsquo;re protesting. What makes the French so drawn to these demonstrations? Why do they love to protest? And what are the consequences of all this protesting? Stay tuned for my thoughts on the matter&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":504,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-france-francophonie"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate.jpg",1200,800,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate-1024x683.jpg",1024,683,true],"hd_qu_size2":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate.jpg",400,267,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate.jpg",1200,800,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/French-love-to-demonstrate.jpg",1200,800,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Christian","author_link":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/author\/christian\/"},"uagb_comment_info":6,"uagb_excerpt":"I don't know about you, but I always love when my French students demonstrate in class. It's just so entertaining to see them passionately waving their flags and chanting about whatever it is they're protesting. What makes the French so drawn to these demonstrations? Why do they love to protest? And what are the consequences\u2026","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=501"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2153,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501\/revisions\/2153"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learn-french-fun.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}