Harrison Stetler is a freelance journalist and teacher based in Paris.
On Thursday, European leaders released another €50 billion in funding for Ukraine. The funds are a lifeline for the Ukrainian military — but waning US support and the stalemate on the front line are chipping away at Europe’s commitment to Kyiv.
France’s parliament passed a migration bill limiting birthright citizenship, but on Thursday the Constitutional Court struck down parts of the law. Some pro-government figures call this a good compromise — recklessly relying on judges to correct MPs’ votes.
On Monday, Emmanuel Macron’s government lost a vote on a new immigration law, as right-wing parties demanded even tighter limits. Faced with a harshening political climate, France’s 700,000 undocumented workers have little hope of gaining regular status.
France’s top court has thrown out a ban on the ecological group Earth Uprisings. The interior minister labeled the group “terroristic” for its attacks on property — but its actions are a response to the government’s own criminal inaction on the climate crisis.
The war in Gaza has again shown the West’s capacity for selective indignation. France Insoumise MP Arnaud Le Gall told Jacobin why it’s time to end the “clash of civilizations” narrative — and adopt an internationalist foreign policy.
France is holding its first full trial of “left-wing terrorists” in decades. Prosecutors say it’d be unfair if leftists didn’t face the same charges as far-right or Islamist militants — but the terrorist conspiracy they allege is mere fantasy.
Palestinian feminist Mariam Abudaqa was on a speaking tour in France when Israel destroyed her home in Gaza. France’s government tried to expel her — but, Abudaqa tells Jacobin, she refuses to stop telling the truth about Israel’s crimes.
This week, a French court struck down the government’s blanket ban on pro-Palestine rallies. But now, authorities are taking things further, citing “anti-terrorism” measures to break up left-wing groups and even expel activists from France.
European Union officials like to boast that the bloc has become a real geopolitical power. But the EU’s craven rubber-stamping of Israel’s assault on Gaza shows that it does no more than echo the line coming from Washington.
French interior minister Gérald Darmanin has ordered that families of “delinquents” be evicted from social housing. Such collective punishment tramples on all manner of legal principles — but fits with the government’s repressive crackdown in poor suburbs.
France has issued a blanket ban on pro-Palestine rallies in the name of preempting potential antisemitism. In a witch-hunt atmosphere, all who refuse to give unconditional support for Israel’s looming invasion of Gaza are treated as “pro-terrorist.”
France’s education minister has banned girls in public schools from wearing the abaya, a loose-fitting Islamic dress. Emmanuel Macron’s government is whipping up conflict over identity — but ignoring the real problems that face France’s underfunded classrooms.
For decades, France has kept control over its old African colonies by backing pliant local strongmen. Recent coups in Niger and Gabon against governments accused of alignment to Paris show that France’s informal empire is breaking apart.
Bastille Day is meant to be about freedom, equality, and brotherhood. But this July 14, Emmanuel Macron is rolling out the red carpet for India’s far-right premier — showing how little France’s military alliances conform to its supposed values.
Last week’s rioting in France saw over 3,600 arrests, including 1,100 minors. Courts are already handing out long jail sentences to supposed culprits — answering the political demand for vengeance even as the suburbs’ plight goes ignored.
The police killing of a 17-year-old in a Paris suburb has sparked a revolt against state violence across France. But powerful police unions have closed ranks behind the killer, in a backlash that shows French cops’ refusal to accept even basic accountability.
The movement against Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform saw shocking scenes of police violence against protesters. Yet far from standing up to abuses, the justice system is turning a blind eye to the government’s attacks on civil liberties.
France’s neofascist groups are on the rise, with a spate of recent attacks against their opponents. Their violence against migrants, left-wingers, and even state officials shows that the far-right advance isn’t just “populist” rhetoric — it’s a deadly danger.
France’s interior minister has threatened to ban environmentalist groups said to represent a risk of “violence against property.” It’s part of a worrying clampdown on civil liberties that belies Emmanuel Macron’s supposedly “liberal” politics.
On Friday, France’s Constitutional Council upheld Emmanuel Macron’s deeply unpopular pension reform. The move shows the bankruptcy of a constitution that puts only minimal checks on the president’s power.