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Chaos on the streets of French cities has brought back the seductive notion that violence can set you free. It is a myth—and a recipe for civil war, writes Bernard-Henri Lévy. Amid the uproar of the citizen demonstrations of recent weeks in France, and under the influence of leading figures in Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s extreme-left party, France Unbowed (La France Insoumise), one theme is making a powerful comeback: the idea of an invisible, insidious, systemic violence supposedly exercised in democratic societies, which it is legitimate to oppose with the visible, direct, frank violence of the riot. I know this idea well. It was Jean-Paul Sartre’s concept when, in his preface to The Wretched of the Earth by the anticolonialist ideologue Frantz Fanon, Sartre presented the murder of the colonizer as the response to the oppression of the colonial system. It was the idea of the writer Jean Genet in a famous article, “Violence and Brutality,” published in Le Monde in 1977, in which he presented the terrorism of the Baader-Meinhof gang in Germany as a necessity dictated by the anti-imperialist struggle. And it was already the idea of Georges Sorel who, at the very beginning of the 20th century in his Reflections on Violence, opposed the force of the “bourgeois state” with a “proletarian violence” endowed with supposedly regenerative virtues. I thought this idea had been discredited by the post-May 1968 intellectual movement, the critique of totalitarianism by the New Philosophers movement which I led, and the reckoning with the fascist, Nazi, and communist catastrophes. But apparently not. And so, we must start all over again. The first thing wrong with this notion of “counterviolence” is that it never strikes at the heart of the hated regime, but instead at the most exposed and most vulnerable people. The police officer who earns 2,000 euros a month, works night shifts, and protects, at the risk of his life, property, people, and the right to demonstrate. The shopkeeper who earns his gross profit on Saturdays and whose ransacked store was his only capital. The owner of the burned-out car who already struggled to afford a tank of gas and who must now find the money to replace the vehicle or face the obstacle course of dealing with insurance companies. The riot claims to strike at “the system,” but it falls upon women and men who are neither its masters nor its beneficiaries, but its humblest subjects. It claims to avenge the humiliated, but it adds to their humiliation fear, ruin, and the feeling of having been abandoned.

President Emmanuel Macron admitted on Monday that his government was caught flat-footed by the outburst of violent riots earlier this month accross France, which threaten to continue for the foreseeable future. The post Macron Admits Government Did Not Anticipate Violence of Islamo-Leftist Youth Riots appeared first on Breitbart .

French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to prevent more rioting and looting by maintaining a heightened security presence and tasking his government to respond to some of the protesters’ demands.

A packed Stade de France near Paris made history Sunday as it hosted its first NFL regular-season game with the Pittsburgh Steelers defeating the New Orleans Saints 16-10 in a festive, party atmosphere. On hand for the historic occasion were tens of thousands of fans happy to defy the violent riots engulfing the rest of the country. The post Vive le NFL! Festive Crowd Defies French Rioters as Upbeat Paris Match Completed appeared first on Breitbart .

France avoided a repeat of the violence that stunned the country on Oct. 17, but isn’t any closer to resolving underlying anger that’s fueled mass protests in France and shows few signs of abating. Bloomberg's Ben Sills has the details. (Source: Bloomberg)

Thousands of police officers in riot gear descended on Paris Saturday to monitor France’s only sanctioned protest. The officers — wearing helmets and carrying shields — uniformly walked through the city as protesters shouted obscenities at them.

Riot police clashed with protesters in Paris on Saturday after a march over living costs drew around 110,000 people, according to France’s Interior Ministry. Footage captured demonstrators hurling projectiles, people being dragged away and storefronts being smashed as unrest spread to Marseille and Lyon.

Police in France arrested 1,314 rioters Saturday as violent street clashes continue to consume the country, the interior ministry said, adding 53 officers were hurt in clashes. The post France: 1,300+ Rioters Arrested, 53 Police Officers Injured in Continued Unrest appeared first on Breitbart .

While the police kept a lid on vandalism, the huge number of protesters, and France’s fraught politics, suggest unrest could grow.

France avoided a repeat of large-scale violence and looting that marred nationwide protests a week ago, suggesting the government’s decision to boost police numbers and contain marches paid off.

After largely peaceful marches on Saturday, clashes broke out in the evening. But a large-scale police presence, 1,000 arrests and the rerouting of protest routes kept a lid on wholesale vandalism.

Riots and looting spread to Barcelona, Spain, on Saturday evening as local youths sought to imitate the unrest seen in France and other European nations in recent weeks, apparently motivated by little more than a desire to cause destruction and loot stores. The post ‘Let’s Go to Footlocker!’ French-Style Unrest Spreads to Spain as Youths Riot and Loot in Barcelona appeared first on Breitbart .

France's Interior Ministry said 410,000 people took part in protests nationwide, though unions said the true figure was twice as high.

The NFL shut down its NFL House fan hub in Paris on Saturday, and the New Orleans Saints postponed their own fan events to Sunday as the French capital explodes in violent protests.

Tourists were turned away from the Louvre as heightened security measures, nationwide demonstrations and fears of further unrest disrupted travel and major cultural attractions across Paris.

Firearms dealers in Paris have reported a massive surge in sales for non-lethal deterrents including high power pepper spray guns. The post Self-Defence Weapons Sales Surge in Paris Ahead of Anticipated ‘Act II’ Riots on Saturday appeared first on Breitbart .

Looters ravaged a storied commercial avenue in France’s second-largest city. Its merchants fear that more unrest could follow.

A new round of protests is set to hit France Saturday, raising fears of a repeat of last weekend’s riots.

French unrest pushed bond yields to a 24-year high as investors weigh budget, growth and sectors risks ahead of more protests.

President Trump says the NFL could have "postponed" Sunday's game in Paris as the French capital descends into anarchy. The post Trump Says NFL Probably Could Have Postponed’ Paris Game Due to Riots appeared first on Breitbart .

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin compared the Paris riots to Chicago's violent crime, warning young Americans that France's socialist policies lead to turmoil.

State Department issued travel warning ahead of a busy weekend in Paris that promises 'act two' riots and a major NFL match in the city. The post U.S. Issues Riots Security Alert For France Ahead of Paris NFL Match appeared first on Breitbart .

France announced it will deploy 70,000 police officers on Saturday to combat rioting after last weekend's protests turned violent.

The Pittsburgh Steelers canceled a fan event in Paris ahead of the NFL's big Oct. 25 game at the Stade de France as the country continues to be beset by violent rioting and looting. The post Steelers Cancel Fan Event in Paris as Rioting in France Continues, But NFL Says Game is On appeared first on Breitbart .

Late Friday morning, Sam exited a hunting store in central Paris, fresh from spending €600 ($671) on weapons designed for self protection.