Over Half of Barcelona Protesters Were Under 18

European street protests have expanded into a multi-national movement this week. The unrest began in late September in France and has since reached nine countries. Demonstrators in Milan, Marseille, Madrid, and other cities have taken to the streets in recent weeks. While most events started peacefully, many ended with violence and looting.

The scale of the demonstrations varies by location. Thousands rallied in Rome and Florence. Hundreds of thousands gathered across France. In Madrid, a tent encampment has occupied a city-center square since late September. Tens of thousands of mostly young people marched in Lisbon earlier this month. In Brussels, police used tear gas and water cannon after masked young men threw rocks and firecrackers at officers.

A defining feature of this wave is the age of the participants. A large number of those arrested are minors. In Barcelona, more than half of the people detained during clashes last weekend were under 18. Italian news agency LaPresse reported that minors were also among those apprehended in Milan following recent confrontations.

Protesters are organizing largely through social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Belgium's interior minister described this trend as the TikTokisation of protests. Student unions play a role in coordination, but they are also inspired by peers in other countries. In Barcelona, students used the hashtag #InstitutsIndignats, echoing a French slogan.

Grievances center on education, social inequality, and the cost of living. In Madrid and Lisbon, housing prices are a primary frustration. In Athens, a 17-year-old student named Yiannis Papanikolaou told AFP that school buildings are poorly maintained. He said he believes France's actions will spur change in Greece.

Governments are attempting to distinguish between peaceful demonstrators and violent rioters. Intelligence services in France and Belgium describe much of the looting as opportunistic. They also identify intentional chaos orchestrated by ultra-left radical groups. Spanish authorities in Barcelona described the recent clashes as mindless violence.

Political responses are emerging. Italy and France have promised to impose a you break it, you pay for it policy on rioters. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is making parents of minors liable for damage caused by their children. This includes deducting costs from welfare support. France's Civil Code already holds parents living with their children liable for damage.