Youth, protest and the fight for social rights in Europe

Barricaded lycées in France, tents across Madrid’s Puerta del Sol. In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands have taken to the streets in two of Europe’s largest democracies. French pupils are demanding decent schools with enough teachers and safe buildings and classrooms in which they can learn. In Spain, people are protesting a housing crisis that has priced a generation out of independent life. Both mobilisations come at a politically charged moment for both countries, as the far right climbs in the polls and increasingly sets the terms of public debate, eroding democratic standards along the way. 

Behind these protests lies a bigger question: what happens after the tents come down? Too often, the energy of mass protest struggles to outlast the moment. Often, people care deeply about politics, but the parties, unions and associations that once turned anger into lasting change are growing weaker. So how can today’s protests deliver real change on affordable housing, good public schools and other social rights that shape everyday life? 

This panel discussion looks at that question through the lens of youth politics. France’s school protests are driven almost entirely by 15- to 18-year-olds. In Spain, young people are a strong presence on the streets and squares, marching alongside tenants’ unions, trade unions and older generations hit by the same crisis. But these are not only French or Spanish stories. Pupils in Liège have already followed their French peers, and unaffordable housing and underfunded public services are shaping young people’s lives from Dublin to Athens. What role can youth movements and progressive youth organisations across Europe play in turning this energy for a more social Europe into something that lasts? 

Join us to discuss with our panellists:

🎙️ Emma Rafowicz, MEP (S&D) and Vice-Chair of the Committee on Culture and Education, Former president of the Young Socialists in France
🎙️ Mariam Asghari, Secretary General of the Young European Socialists
🎙️ Javier Carbonell, Director of Future Policy Lab and Policy Analyst at the EPC

For more information regarding the event, please do not hesitate to contact Matteo Dressler, Policy Analyst on Democracy and Participation, FEPS (matteo.dressler@feps-europe.eu) and Alice Nicaise, Project Officer, FEPS (alice.nicaise@feps-europe.eu).