Category Archives: May Day

At least 108 police injured and 291 held in May Day protests in cities across France

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Teargas fired amid clashes as unions turn traditional marches into anti-government protest against pension reform

French police fired teargas and clashed with demonstrators in Paris and other cities on Monday after trade unions transformed their traditional Labour Day marches into anti-government demonstrations against the rise in the retirement age.

At least 108 police were wounded and 291 people detained across France as violence erupted in several cities on the sidelines of the main union-led marches, the interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, said. In Paris, 25 police were injured and 111 people were detained. One police officer suffered serious burns to his hands and face after being hit by a petrol bomb, he said.

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May Day marches across France send pensions message to Macron

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Unions warn that plans to raise retirement age could lead to protests and strikes amid cost of living crisis

Tens of thousands of people have taken part in French street demonstrations as Labour Day marches sent a “message” to Emmanuel Macron that he must consult citizens more during his second term, and reverse plans to raise the retirement age or face protests.

“There will be a fight over pensions, that’s clear – battle has been declared,” said the leftwing CGT trade union in Toulouse. Trade unionists, environmentalists and parties on the left – as well as yellow-vest anti-government protesters – marched in cities across France, demanding a rise in pensions and salaries and an end to Macron’s plan to gradually raise the pension age to 65.

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Thousands march through London in biggest ‘kill the bill’ protest yet

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Critics of the police, crime, sentencing and courts bill say it would curb the right to protest

Thousands of protesters have marched through central London against the new police, crime, sentencing and courts bill, in the biggest protest under the “kill the bill” banner to have taken place so far.

After gathering in Trafalgar Square from midday, protesters marched past Buckingham Palace then through Victoria, past the Department for Education and the Home Office, and finally across the river to Vauxhall Gardens.

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Paris hospital attacked by May Day protesters, say officials

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Staff say they stopped attempt to enter intensive care, but intruders smashed computers

French officials say medical staff narrowly averted “a catastrophe” after May Day demonstrators reportedly stormed a Paris hospital and attempted to force their way into an intensive care unit.

About 50 protesters – some wearing gilets jaunes (yellow vests) and others with masks – entered the hospital after the admission of a riot police officer who was hit in the face by a paving stone towards the end of a traditional union-led 1 May march.

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Clashes as May Day protesters march in cities across Europe

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Worst violence occurs in Paris but trouble also flares in Berlin, Gothenburg and St Petersburg

Police and protesters have clashed, sometimes violently, in cities across Europe as tens of thousands of trade unionists, anti-capitalists and other demonstrators marched in traditional May Day rallies.

The worst confrontations were in Paris, where riot police fired teargas and stingball grenades as a 40,000-strong crowd, included gilets jaunes (yellow vests) protesters and an estimated 2,000 masked and hooded “black bloc” activists, marched from Montparnasse station to Place d’Italie.

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May Day: teargas and arrests in protests across Europe – video report

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Police and protesters have clashed in cities across Europe as tens of thousands of trade unionists, anti-capitalists and other demonstrators march in traditional May Day rallies. The worst confrontations were in Paris, where riot police fired teargas and stingball grenades as a 40,000-strong crowd marched from Montparnasse station to Place d'Italie

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Puerto Rico board files bankruptcy-like case to cut island debt

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The process that Puerto Rico has undertaken is a prelude to bankruptcy, but in this case it is tailored for governments. Because of the impending bankruptcy filing, lawsuits will presumably be frozen, preventing court rulings that favor one creditor group over another.

Live Video: Violence during Portland May Day march

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Portland and Salem were among dozens of U.S. cities holding rallies and marches on May Day to protest the treatment of workers and President Donald Trump's efforts to deport undocumented immigrants. Participants in Portland's May Day event met at Shemanski Park around 3 p.m. and began marching about a half hour later.

Thousands Expected to Show at Bay Area May Day Rallies

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Protestors assembled and businesses closed during "A Day Without Immigrants," a strike and boycott staged by immigrants to protest the Trump administration's immigration agenda and to demonstrate the importance of immigrants to the U.S. economy and way of life. Hundreds of thousands of protesters on Monday are expected to gather across the country for International Workers' Day - a May 1 tradition that has gained renewed momentum as strident immigration rhetoric continues to seep out of the Trump administration.