#yellowvestmovement

                                                How It Started

           An ongoing event going on in France is the yellow vest protests that began shortly after the election of President Emmanuel Macron in November 2018 (NPR). Citizens around the nation were upset when President Emmanuel Macron after he passed a green tax on fuel that would go into effect in January of 2019 (NPR). Many felt that this tax separated President Macron as an elite and rich president, some even referring to the movement as a Macron Revolution (NPR). This represents a populist movement since populism, “assumes a basic antagonism between the people and an elite at the heart of its politics” (Judis, 2012, 2). Margaret Canovan describes populists movements as “of the people but not of the system” that “involves some kind of revolt against the established structure of power in the name of the people” (Canovan, 1999, 3). Populist movements in particular challenge not only established power-holders but also the values of the elite, in this case against Macron and his policy on taxes (Canovan, 1999, 3). The protests began through the power of the media when an online petition was posted in May and it went viral and has no official leadership. After the petition received almost a million signatures, real in-person protests began on the 17th of November (NPR). In the first few works of the protests, over 280,000 protesters took the streets nationwide (NPR). 

         The protest was named the yellow vest movement (or gilets jaunes) for the yellow safety vests protestors wore for protection and to show unity. The protests began in the French provinces and eventually migrated to Paris, where they became violent (NPR). In a recent unauthorized protest in Paris, police said 32 people were detained and 21 were fined (Time). In Bordeaux, the police used tear gas while protesters retaliated by setting fire to debris and forcing their way through security barriers; they were then banned from protesting in the city center (Time). Members of the protests mainly consisted of the working and middle classes upset about standards of living in France. Most complaints moved away from the high gasoline tax and continued even after they were lifted; the new motives are around the incomes being too high for social welfare benefits but too low to provide for themselves (NPR).

                                 Anti-Semitism within the Movement

        There is increasing worry of controversy over the yellow vests and if the movement is becoming anti-Semitic (BBC). These ideas were prompted after French philosopher Alain Finkielkraut was verbally attacked when passing by the yellow-vest protests in Paris. Phrases like “dirty Zionist” and “go back to Tel Aviv” were yelled at Finkielkraut, and he stated if police weren’t there he would have truly feared for his safety (BBC). Official reports said there has been a 74% increase in anti-Semitic attacks in France in the last year (BBC). Could these be related to the yellow-vests movement? This once again goes along with the idea that many extremists are associated with this group. Many feel the movement has sparked these anti-Semitic attacks because it supports transgression on multiple levels. While the the protesters are not part of an anti-Semitic movement, verbal attacks and chants like these are common during their Saturday demonstrations. Many of these are done by self-proclaimed leaders, this the movement itself is leaderless. Some protesters are protesting the racist ones, which shows that there is a separation of motives and confusion even within the movement. Both President Macron and Front National leader Marine Le Pen have denounced these attacks (BBC). However, Le Pen has been and her far-left rival Jean-Luc Melencon have been trying to win the support of these yellow vests in the midst of European elections in May (BBC). One can wonder if these attacks will steer more people away from being involved in the movement and support will plummet.

                                         Support Levels Decreasing

         Fast forward four months later, according to Anne Applebaum from the Washington Post, national support is dropping as of the end of March (Applebaum, 2019). Over half of the French people claim they want to the yellow vests to stop their protests because of the amount of violence associated with it and inconvenient traffic in Paris. Many are also upset with what the protests have turned into, saying that the protesters are not the same people or have the same motives as in November (Applebuam, 2019). Some are now referring to protestors as political extremists, both far left and far right, who took advantage of this movement to create their own platform, using it as a battlefield to fight each other and the elite (Applebaum, 2019). The violence amongst these people is also increasing, with reports in Paris of protesters attacking shops and small business. These attacks don’t match up with the anti-elite cries these protesters are shouting.

         Protestors from provinces traveling to Paris claim they are also objecting the high taxes they pay but receive no social services in return (Applebaum, 2019). However, experts are saying these claims aren’t true and that, “anyone in France who has ever received housing assistance, a free prescription, or sixteen weeks of paid maternity leave has benefited from the social protective system” (Applebaum, 2019). Experts also said benefits of these taxes include excellent infrastructure, mainly free education, and first-rate health care with little direct cost (Applebaum, 2019). Opponents of the yellow vest movement have expressed confusion that these protesters are fighting high taxes but are really just taking advantage of all of the support the French government provides, especially in comparison to other countries. The article explains that while France has a big age gap between the rich and poor, money flows from rich to poor (redistributive welfare system) than most European countries (Applebaum). However, it is the way in which people perceive policies that matter most, and if they aren’t realizing this is happening, they are going to be dissatisfied and will protest. The article brings up an interesting point, stating, “the gilets jaunes have created a major dilemma for anyone who believes that politics should be about policies – taxes, spending, health care, road – and not emotions” (Abblebaum, 2019).  It is the way in which people feel about these policies, how they feel valued in their careers and by their government, and if they feel they are being appreciated that matters to them most. This needs to be realized for satisfaction and a real change to happen.  

France cleans up Champs-Elysees after yellow vest rioting Paris cleaned up one of the world’s most glamorous avenues Saturday after resurgent rioting by yellow vest protesters angry at President Emmanuel Macron stunned the nation. Luxury stores, restaurants