Paris Bastille Day protests

This item appears on page 18 of the September 2019 issue.

In Paris, on July 14 (Bastille Day), “yellow vest” protesters clashed with police near the Champs-Élysées after the annual military parade passed through the area. Police responded with tear gas and arrested more than 150 people.

The yellow vest protests, so called because members of the groups wear yellow safety vests, began in November 2018 in opposition to rising fuel costs and stagnant wages. The movement largely subsided in March 2019, but organizers used the Bastille Day celebration as a catalyst to energize new protests.