1960s: The French Revolution

The 1960s were described as the decade of revolutions that never came. As the highest point of the post-war world II era, the 1968 and 70s changed countries society structure. During the 1960s, the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam war had a major impact on American society. At the same time riots spread across Europe, France, Italy and in the East. During the Spring of 1968 many important movement development violence on campuses from Japan to Italy to Mexico, The U.S. anti-War movement, and Prague Spring. However, France had one of the most important uprisings since the Great revolution of 1789. In May of 1968, students and police officers collide in the street of Paris burning cars and barricade. Students and half of the French
workforce impacted French society in a way which is considered to this day as a culture, social and moral turning point in the history of France. (Ed/ Children in History)
The student uprising of spring of 1968 started in the United States at the University of Columbia in New York.
Students of Columbia University protest university support of the United States involvement in the Vietnam war. However, the protest which occurs in Paris and other cities in France change the foundation of France society. The student revolt began as a protest against visitor of the opposite sex in dorm rooms at a Suburban Paris campus. On March 22, radical student and associate occupied an administration building in Nanterre University. The students and associate held a meeting dealing with class discrimination in France society and bureaucracy government which controlled the university’s foundation. The conflict between the student and the police followed and by May 2 the administration of the university of Paris at Nanterre shut down the university. The following day students of Sorbonne university protested the closure and the expulsion of several students in Nanterre. In May 5 students had a general assembly and the police close down and surrounded Nanterre. (Ed/ Children in
History)
By May 6th the national student union of Nanterre and teachers came together in the center of Paris to protest the police invasion in Sorbonne. More than 20,000 students, teachers, and supporters march toward Sorbonne to comfort the police offices that shut down the university. The student demanded the government to dropped the charge against the student that they arrested and to reopen Nanterre and Sorbonne university. On May 10th, a large crowd meets on the Rive Gauche and another confrontation between students and police officers happen. This event was broadcasted on the radio and the aftermath was showed on television casting more attention to student protecting. After the Rive Gauche, the education Minister started to negotiations with the students. By May 13th over a million people marched through Paris and police involvement decrease. Prime Minister George Pompidou announced the reopening of Sorbonne and release prisoners. In May 14th workers of the Sud Aviation plant started a strike because of a lack of management in the plant. Workers began to occupied factories and by May 16th occupied fifty factories. Two days later two million workers were on strike. (Ed / Warwick Digital Collections)
The number of the worker in strike increased to ten million or two-thirds of French workforce. Four thousand student united with the ten million of works factories where shutdown and communist party were urged to try to stop the strikes. Worker demanded higher wages and other economic demands. Radical demanded to expel of the government and Minister Gaulle. Worker refuse to go back to work after the trade union leadership negotiated a 35%increase in minimum, an increase of 7% wage to other worker and half of normal pay for the time of the strike. By May 24th protestors set fire to the Paris stock exchange. The state prepares to us brutal force to stop the protestor. Communist party officer retained many worker strikers and sent the worker to factories. The Grenelle agreement was signed on May 26th allowing an increase of minimum wage by 25%and average salaries by 10%. As the government was close to collapse Gaulle announce the dissolution of the National Assembly and an election to follow June 23th and ordered the worker to return to work. By June 5th most workers had returned to work and the national student union was off the streets protesting. By June 6th police retook control of Sorbonne and election were held later in June and the strike became to an end. (Ed/ Sreenan)
The uprising of Paris in 1968 changed the French society the same way 1960s change the united states.
The 1960s and 70s are characterized by a worldwide struggle “Against work and exploitation, against the state, against class society, against authority, against racial, sexual and gender repression, against war, against the stifling morality and conformities of daily life” (Ed). Immigrant policies in France where loosened allowing North African and Sub-Saharan Africans immigration to increased. Equality in the workplaces for women became widely accepted and many gender role in families where broken. The 1968 uprising set a political foundation that brought to power the French Socialists in 1981, this sets a street demonstration as a lasting part of modern French political theater. (Everson/ Children in
History)