The pyromaniac at the Élysée Palace set the fire. In Nantes, as throughout France, spontaneous calls against the 49-3 brought tens of thousands of people together within a few hours. It was no longer about pensions, but about the “revolution” that was sung in chorus in the demonstration marches.
In Nantes, the repressive apparatus that has terrorized the city for months was caught off guard this time: even with all its grenades, it could not quell the rage.
For several hours, dozens of barricades burned throughout the city center. The whole heart of Nantes smells of burnt plastic and tear gas, but it’s a boost of oxygen: finally, people are raising their heads.
Various shop windows of capitalist businesses are smashed. The CRS1 assaults are kept at bay by impressive fireworks. Many trade unionists hold the street together with the youth. In the Rue de Strasbourg, the BAC2 has to flee under the throwing of Molotov cocktails. A huge fire softens the asphalt. The city center belongs to the demonstrators! Several marches move in different places in a yellow vest atmosphere. In the alleys of Bouffay, you no longer know who is demonstrating and who is coming out of the bars, because “everyone hates the police”. There is singing on the terraces. Luxury boutiques and flagships of multinationals are cleared. Until 1 a.m., the forces of order cannot move without being insulted from everywhere. At 11 p.m., a fire is still burning on the Cours des 50 Otages, and demonstrators are driven away by volleys of grenades. After midnight, the Rue de Strasbourg is still blocked, torn up and torn up again, and littered with projectiles for hundreds of meters. The word “revenge” is written in red letters on a wall.
As soon as the French state does not march several dozen militarized squadrons in our city, as soon as the union leaders do not organize the “dangerous route” requested by the prefecture, the anger of Nantes can finally unleash the full potential of its force. And the numbers don’t matter much, because this night of barricades will have made more noise than the eight previous, well-supervised processions with their tens of thousands of people. Rennes, Nantes, Paris, Marseille or Lyon, the fire is spreading.
After canceling a trip to the Gironde region, Gérald Darmanin (Minister of the Interior) convened all prefects of France this morning for a video conference on the “social situation”. Four more years with Macron are unthinkable for everyone. The calls for an “inter-union” day in a week seem ridiculous. After this night of rage, we should act without delay.
This report on the spontaneous revolt in Nantes on March 16 after the French government imposed its “pension reform” by decree (49.3) appeared on Contre Attaque on 17.32023.
Found on bonustracks.blackblogs
https://bonustracks.blackblogs.org/2023/03/17/nantes-die-nacht-der-barrikaden/
Source: Kontrapolis
DN Notes
1. CRS, Compagnies républicaines de sécurité. The CRS are a civilian corps (unlike the gendarmes, who are military), trained in anti-insurrection and antiriot techniques.
2. BAC, Brigade anti-criminalité. Plain clothes cops, identifiable in riot/protest situations by their orange arm bands. Used regulary in so called “sensitive areas” such as housing estates (banlieues) or economically poor or even migrant neighborhoods.
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