Between Indifference and Rejection of Politics: Mobilization of Youth in Post-contentious France

Abstract

This chapter takes stock of the scholarly puzzlement over recent protests in France. While some scholars have wondered whether the ‘contentious French’ (Tilly, 1986) are not that contentious anymore (Chabanet et al., 2018), recent mobilizations indicate a revival of street politics. We argue that France no longer fits its traditional portrait of an endemically contentious country. Our analysis shows that young people in France are characterized by consistently lower levels of political participation, notably when looking at disruptive forms. The rather comforting vision of a disputing, disaffected or dissatisfied, but engaged youth, constituting a force of change, requires to be revisited. However, our main findings also suggest that an emerging ‘post-contentious’ turning point does not necessarily amount to a broader process of acquiescence. The chapter concludes that French youths’ social exclusion seems to be extending itself in the form of a new type of political exclusion.