‘This is a crisis of hope’: Echoes of 1968 as France’s students rise up

The scale of protests raging across France over the education system, attracting hundreds of thousands of pupils, teachers and parents, has been described as exceptional by unions and student movement organisers.“I think this is very historic and unprecedented by how big it is,” Alice Cohen-Morzadec, international spokesperson for France’s Student Union, said on Tuesday, when government sources put the number of protesters at 266,000.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘We’re short of resources’: France’s student protesters, in their wordslist 2 of 4France halts police use of stun grenades at student protestslist 3 of 4Over 100 arrested in Belgium student protests over education costslist 4 of 4How much does France spend on education?end of list“Some are saying this is the biggest movement since May 1968,” she added.The student protests at Paris universities nearly five decades ago were initially driven by opposition to an outdated and overcrowded system, limited opportunities and broader political concerns.The unrest soon spread beyond campuses, expanding into nationwide strikes involving millions of workers that virtually paralysed the country.Back then, President Charl...