Tax Hikes, Growing Poverty Cited as Reasons for French Protests

Some yellow vest demonstrators denounce violence as protests spread across France, other parts of Europe

Riot police line up in front of Yellow vest protesters in Place de l'Etoile in Paris on Dec. 1, 2018. David Vives/The Epoch Times

PARIS—It’s a very chaotic scene at the Place de l'Etoile, the tourist-favorite junction in the heart of Paris that the Arc de Triomphe has been overlooking for close to two centuries.

Lines of police officers face hundreds of protesters wearing yellow vests. A female police officer shouts with a megaphone, “Last warning, we’re going to charge.” Her voice is subdued by the crowd, which soon breaks out in an improvised rendition of “La Marseillaise”—a revolutionary battle song from the 18th century that is the French national anthem.