French Revolution: Mass Protests Overwhelm Police In France

Months of protests in France involving hundreds of thousands of citizens staging the biggest revolution in 200 years, has completely overwhelmed the country’s police force.  French police have begged the government to listen to the protestors, arguing that they are ill-equipped to deal with the on-going uprising. Theantimedia.org reports: Months of mass demonstrations and violence linked to the Euro 2016 football tournament have left French police begging for mercy. A heated combination of protests against controversial changes to France’s employment laws and outbreaks of violence by Russian and British football fans has taken its toll, leading a union leader to beg for a reprieve for French law enforcement. Protests opposing Francois Hollande’s proposals to relax France’s labour code began in March and have been called the largest and longest-lasting since the French Revolution. While the government argues the changes are crucial to lower unemployment, protesters claim they are bad for workers’ rights. Countrywide protests have included strikes and blockades of oil refineries and hundreds of fuel depots. Workers also downed tools at the state-owned rail company. On June 14, some masked protesters hurled paving slabs, smashed shop windows, and burned cars on the city streets. Despite relatively little mainstream media coverage [...]