In late October, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a new tax on diesel fuel as part of his plan to combat climate change. Shortly after, “yellow jacket” protests began, spearheaded by ordinary working people. While the demonstrations initially originated from the rising fuel taxes, they have evolved into a movement against President Macron and his government. In recent weeks, the yellow jacket protests have become violent, leaving 12 dead and 1,700 injured. The protests have also employed a far-right ideology, rallying with racism, sexism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and homophobia.
The concerns of the working class are valid: recent economic changes have plunged them into despair more than other socioeconomic groups. Given that French economic growth has decelerated this year, it can be argued that now is not the best time to initiate labor reforms that make replacing employees easier and less costly. But the French government should not tolerate the violent and hateful methods of the protestors. Now that the movement endangers civilians, officials, and infrastructure, it is important that the protests be resolved soon.
President Macron has already acknowledged his faults as well as made compromises to please the yellow jacket protestors. At first, he suspended the fuel tax for six months, then abandoned it altogether. In December, he declared $11.4 billion in pay raises and tax cuts for those with relatively low incomes. Despite these efforts, the protests resumed in early January as 50,000 people demonstrated across the country.
President Macron should continue to stand by his reform, which will grow France’s economy. He must understand that he can sacrifice only so much of his employment and tax reforms. If all labor laws are loosened, President Macron will show a pronounced weakness in the face of opposition. He must demonstrate his commitment to the economic reform program he’s worked to turn into reality, not only to uphold government stability but also to reassure investors.
In responding to the protests only when they turned violent, President Macron made a grave mistake. Eliminating critical aspects of his ecological reform program reinforced protestors’ beliefs that violence is the singular option — only when demonstrators resorted to burning down buildings did they manage to enact any meaningful change. Likewise, President Macron’s surrender indirectly supported the yellow jacket protestors’ vehement opposition to immigration, notions of white supremacy, and vulgar sexism. As a country that prides itself on being an “indivisible, secular, democratic and social republic” that “ensures the equality of all citizens before the law,” as per its Constitution, President Macron should not be giving in to people who threaten the safety of French minority populations.
Rather than surrendering to violent pressures, President Macron must strive to provide these workers, and others in rural France, with greater democratic representation. His establishment of a “great national debate,” which will last for two months and bring together the mayors of 600 towns to discuss potential solutions to the protests, has the power to give the French public a say in the government through peaceful means. If this new initiative proves successful, the French government may establish policies geared toward satisfying the “forgotten middle class” that can alleviate temptations of protest. Only then can Macron gain traction among yellow vests, and perhaps renounce his informal title as “president of the rich.”
