From France to Spain the workers and youth are demanding an end to austerity
By Abayomi Azikiwe
Editor, Pan-African News Wire
November 11, 2026
Political Review
On Saturday November 7 French workers and students went into the streets once again demanding relief from the deteriorating social and economic conditions.
In France these mass demonstrations and stay-aways have been taking place since mid-September.
The November 7 actions represented the fourth straight Saturday in which people held nationwide demonstrations and rebellions. Just two days before there was a two-day general strike throughout France impacting various sectors of the national economy.
Led by high school students as a result of the lack of teachers and dilapidated buildings, the unrest quickly spread to encompass labor unions and the resurrection of the “Yellow Vests” movement which was centered around escalating costs of transportation. France under President Emmanuel Macron has faced increasing police repression and a sharp decline in living standards.
The situation in France and other European states cannot be viewed in isolation from developments in the United States. Pressure placed upon Western European capitalist states through the US tariffs policy, the Russian Special Military Operation in Ukraine and the unprovoked war by the Trump administration and the State of Israel all have triggered inflationary spirals.
Although the European NATO states have not entered directly into the war against Iran, the impact has been clear. In the United Kingdom the arrest of several people traveling near the Royal Air Force Fairford base was prompted by the White House which wants to link these individuals to the Islamic Republic of Iran.
These accusations and prosecutions only add further economic and political burdens on the UK government which has serious problems related to unemployment and the decline in public services. Demonstrations and strikes have not yet erupted in the UK although in previous years there have been industrial actions in various sectors including healthcare, transportation and the civil service.
Trump during the early period of his second non-consecutive term demanded that other North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) governments allocate five percent of their national budgets towards defense expenditures. The strain of increasing military costs requires cutbacks in other areas of national life.
These mandates placed upon the French government have compounded an already mounting debt crisis. In Europe overall, the debt burden is 88.8% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
A similar concern exists as it is related to the US as the national debt has climbed to more than $40 trillion. An estimated $7.8 trillion has been attributed to the nearly six years that Trump has held the presidency.
Expanding Unrest Throughout Europe
In a mapping analysis published by Al Jazeera on the recent demonstrations in France and other European states, the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) indicates clearly the broad character of the unrest on the continent. The demonstrations and strikes in France have prompted similar actions in several other states.
In the Al Jazeera report it points out that:
“France is not protesting alone. Since mid-September, demonstrations over rising living costs, low wages and a lack of public services have broken out in 30 other European countries, from Portugal to Poland. Between September 15 and October 30, more than 1,700 protests and riots of 100 or more people took place across Europe, according to an analysis of ACLED data. Although protests in other countries did not reach the same scale as the rallies in France, they may be a sign of discontent spilling over, Alberto Alemanno, professor of European Union law and policy at HEC Paris Business School, told Al Jazeera last month.” (https://www.aljazeera.com/
On November 11, there was a one-day general strike in Spain, the first one in 14 years. Millions took the streets to protest the rising inflation which has created a serious housing shortage.
Participation in the Spanish strike was reported to be as high as 90%. The strongest level of support was in the coastal regions of Catalonia and Andalucía where the rising costs for housing has created enormous problems for working people.
Even in France, the flashpoint of the European unrest, the people have by no means exhausted their expressions of discontent particularly among the workers and youth. A new round of mass actions and strikes were scheduled to resume on November 17.
In response to the unrest in France, 70,000 law-enforcement agents have been deployed during October and November. Hundreds of people have been arrested while others have suffered serious injuries.
On what was anticipated for the actions on November 17, an English language French news website reported:
“Several unions have come together to announce a second day of major ‘interprofessional’ strike action – a ‘grève générale’ – on November 17. Unions including the CGT, l’UNSA, la FSU, Solidaires, CFE-CGC and FA-FP made the announcement following a meeting with the government on Monday November 9. More unions may back the strike before next Tuesday. The unions are once again calling on private- and public-sector workers to strike, as well as for retirees, pupils, university students, and gilets jaunes (yellow jackets) protesters to join demonstrations. Marches will be held in cities across France, and unions will look to replicate the numbers seen at the first round of strikes held on November 5. More information on disruption will be available closer to the time, but it is possible that local services, transport, healthcare, and high-street stores are all impacted.” (https://www.connexionfrance.
These series of strikes and rebellions in France and other European states are a reflection of the international crisis within the capitalist system. The Pentagon war policies and the failure to address inflation have worsened the burgeoning class divisions throughout the European continent, the US and other geopolitical regions of the globe.
In Europe, the UK as well as the US, the rise of far right and neo-fascist political parties has heightened tensions on racial and class levels. In the UK, the Reform UK party has become the largest political manifestation of the efforts to scapegoat migrants and oppressed groups.
France has witnessed the rise of the National Rally which is as equally anti-immigrant as Reform UK in Britain. Germany has seen the Alternatives for Germany (AFD) gain seats in Saxony-Anhalt, where they won 44.5% of the vote in the last election.
A national poll during May 2026 placed the AFD with 27% of the national electoral support. However, so far, other political parties have refused to form governing coalitions with the AFD due to their extreme political views.
In the US, the MAGA Republicans suffered huge losses in the midterm elections. It will be interesting to see how the upcoming elections in France during 2027 will reflect the various political views which are competing inside the country.
Prospects for the Left in the Upcoming National Elections
The presidential elections in France are scheduled to be held on April 18. The left-wing party France Unbowed headed by Jean-Luc Melenchon is seeking to gain broader support in light of the growing militancy among the workers and oppressed.
Melenchon and his party has issued a program entitled “A Shared Future” which seeks to address the growing economic and political crisis gripping France. Melenchon has participated alongside the students and workers in the most recent mass demonstrations.
France 24 news website provided an assessment of the political manifesto of France Unbowed, saying:
“Hard-left French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon pledged to raise the minimum wage and restore the country’s retirement age to 60 in a speech launching his 2027 election program on Saturday. Mélenchon, 75, is viewed as the strongest contender on the left and recent opinion polls have shown him reaching the presidential runoff next April against far-right candidate Marine Le Pen – but also indicate he would lose in the second round. Taking aim at the center-right Macron, he referred to recent demonstrations and rioting in France over the past months. ‘We are living through a strange moment. It is the death throes of the Macron era marked by savagery, police brutality, and the unpredictable, violent outbursts at the end of demonstrations,’ he said. He accused Macron of presiding over a ‘dark end to his reign’ and said that the far right under Le Pen had ‘no idea other than racism’. His manifesto, titled ‘L’Avenir en commun’ (‘A Shared Future’), is the fifth edition of the platform of his party, France Unbowed (LFI), and largely reaffirms policies that have formed the backbone of Mélenchon’s previous presidential bids.” (https://www.france24.com/en/
The failures of President Macron and his Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu to raise the living standards in France provides openings for the left. Although Lecornu has offered reforms related to education and the rising cost of living, it is unlikely that his policy proposals will result in improvements in the social conditions of the workers and youth inside the country.
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