Is Europe Doomed?

When France sneezes, it used to be said, all Europe catches cold. One need only consider the French Revolution, 1848’s “Springtime of the Peoples,” or even the student protests of May 1968 to see the point: There is something about France that allows her to act as both catalyst for and barometer of profound shifts in European order.

One wonders whether the riots currently convulsing the Hexagon will prove the latest illustration of this phenomenon. For the past few weeks, malcontents in their tens of thousands have taken to the streets of cities across the country, demanding—something. The demonstrations started with students, who claimed to be opposing poor conditions in schools and problems with the admissions system for higher education. But the schoolkids were soon joined by trade unionists and radicals of all stripes, and the targets of their wrath expanded to encompass fuel prices and the rising cost of living, government budget cuts, a lack of attention to left-wing priorities, and, ultimately, the notion of authority itself. 

Now protests, in the Gallic tradition, do not tend to display the primness and decorum one might find in a stateside “No Kings” gathering. But this weekend they degenerated into levels of chaos and violence unusual even by French standards. The world was treated to the spectacle of looting, wanton property destruction, and brutal physical assaults across France; nearly 1,000 police officers and gendarmes were injured, and over 2,400 arrests were made between Saturday and Sunday. The degeneracy was perhaps best summed up by an arson attack on the town hall of Limoges, a grand old building that survived two world wars before finally succumbing to the senseless spasms of the mob.

Already, at least a little of the unrest has spread beyond France’s borders. In the past few days, we have seen a few similar demonstrations break out in Madrid, Milan, Lisbon, and Brussels. And there may be good reason to expect further propagation, because the conditions that produced them are common to most European countries.