You are here

France Labor Marches Descend Into Violence

Demonstrators in France clash with police during labor reform protests. Video shows a policeman dressed in riot gear assaulting an unarmed woman. Following a verbal provocation, a Toulouse policeman attacks a woman demonstrator by grabbing her by the throat and sending her flying to the ground. RT reports: Two videos featuring the woman were posted by a YouTube account, Ben Art Core, that appears sympathetic to the cause of the demonstrators, who have been regularly flooding streets of most notable French urban centers since the turn of the year. The footage appears to be selectively edited, but in the first video, the woman can be seen trying to restrain officers, as they pounce on one of the demonstrators, while appearing to be overmatched, during Thursday’s chaotic rally in the southern city. As they rip the clothes off a demonstrator she picks up his jumper, and attempts to hand it back to a row of impassive officers. Local media reported that he was detained for causing violence with a homemade weapon. The second video starts with a policeman blocking the same woman off from walking down a street, where a cordon has been erected. But she follows him, hurling a torrent [...]