From the Yellow Vests protest to the City Council
De la rue au conseil municipal
Résumé
Is France in a new cycle of contention, ranging from occupation movements such as Occupy Wall Street, the “Arab Springs” of 2011 to more recent protest in Hong Kong? In November 2018, the outburst of the Yellow Vests movement has surprised many observers with its magnitude, its forms and its length. The movement started in the fall of 2018 with an online petition launched by a young entrepreneur from the Paris “banlieue”, Priscillia Ludosky. Quickly, different groups and individuals took over social networks and Facebook pages became rallying points. The mobilization continued for several weeks with a high level of intensity, mixing tactics and repertoire of action ranging from demonstration to occupations. The roundabouts have been invested with an unexpected gathering function, through occupation or even deliberation, in rural, urban and suburban France. Today the YV are still active in Saturday demonstrations against COVID-Pass, on roundabouts or in associations. In spite of their rejection of political institutions, the French municipal elections of 2020 led some of the participants to embrace conventional politics. Under which circumstances can a social movement lead to political participation? And how do participants deal with embracing the politics they’ve tried so hard to avoid for two years? What happened when two different electoral lists claimed to represent the YV? The case of a French Southwestern City where two “citizens’” lists emerged from the YV provide insightful views on politicization before and within a social movement.
Relying on quantitative and qualitative data, we can establish how temporality of the social movement affected politicization. In the run-up to the 2019 European elections, and then especially the municipal elections, the different “group cultures” and conceptions of democracy became apparent. They were evident in a city in the southwest of France where two lists claiming to be part of the Yellow Vests competed with each other. While the first – “Local Democracy” –, composed of discreet political activists affiliated with small organizations and committed first-timers, defected, the second, “Commune in Struggle” – strengthened by the social capital and resources of its members, was able to maintain itself and achieve unexpected electoral success.
The style of the group is marked by an anti-capitalist political identity and by alliances with other radical left collectives and parties. The intensity of the commitment is a source of prestige and confers an important legitimacy, the norms of language are agonistic and designate as divisive the extreme right-wing groups or the activists tempted by a reformist path. This re-politicization of the local vote, coupled with the presence of local personalities in social and environmental struggles, as well as the strong reputation of the head of the list, contribute to the dynamics of the group. In contrast, Local Democracy insists in its language on the union and the people of the Yellow Vests. The group delimited its contour by designating the political parties as divisive. The group shared a strong suspicion toward the institutions that endanger the nation and their national sovereignty. Under these circumstances, partisan discretion of its leaders was a necessity. Not having access to local media, it essentially addresses the Yellow Vests through social networks or in weekly demonstrations. We thus conclude that the partisan marginality and the absence of a collective dynamic beyond the Yellow Vests has hampered the list's ability to run for the election.
Domaines
Science politique
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