Yellow Vest Fever. The movement’s unofficial leaders explain why the protests are just the beginning
Since November 2018, the Yellow Vest movement has grabbed the agenda in France through weekly protests. For the first time, the biggest players in the viral uprising appear in a documentary to tell its story. RTD follows them to meetings and marches to find out who they are and what the uprising is really about. Yellow Vest initiators Priscillia Ludosky and Ghislain Coutard describe how they launched the first anti-fuel tax demonstration online. Yellow Vest poster boys Jerome Rodrigues, a victim of police brutality, and Maxime Nicolle give their takes on who’s responsible for the violence at demonstrations. RTD asks the Yellow Vests’ unofficial leaders what will happen to the anger in “peripheral France” as time passes and the government makes concessions.
That is a great informational video you have created and thank you for getting this message out to us.
It is very difficult to watch these people being shot at by the police and it was very sad to see that man lose his eye. These people are very courageous and they are fighting the system.
I do not know when things will change here in Canada, or in the western world, because I think many people here are too weak and sick to put up a fight. There is no good culture here and people are too focussed on nonsense and doing what they're told to do.
I believe our civilization will be wiped out soon and I think that will be the best thing to happen because how can we go on like this any longer? Living a pointless and meaningless life, being terrible people with no morals and no ability to empathize with others. Buying garage and spending our whole days working which gets us nowhere.
In some sense, I wish this would happen today because I have had it with this place and these people and only a few thousand running the world for their benefit. There is nothing worth saving here and it is painful to live here.
It is very depressing to be living in a man made prison and forced to do things you don't want to do. I'm so glad I have no children to worry about because I would be so sad then.
I have to work so hard and i'm not getting anywhere, everything is so expensive and it's so hard to survive. My body is so sore today and i'm tired to doing the same thing over and over again. I want to have more animals, but I can't afford them, so that is very upsetting.
Everyone wants to be a star with their Instagram and Facebook accounts, posting selfies, just to get likes and they get off on that. They want to be told, o you look so beautiful and you're gorgeous and that's fuc*in sad.
Don't people realize that no-one will remember you in 100 years, when you are dead. What you do doesn't matter and everything will turn to dust in the end, including your body. No-one will remember how many likes you got or how fashionable you were. No-one will care that you had a big ass house and you felt better than others.
We are living with the demons here and following Satan and being vain and selfish. This will not turn out good for us. We are almost at the point of no return and we will deserve whatever happens to us.
well said. it is so true
It breaks my heart to read your words. The world in not a prison, and we are not chattel. Your despair is distressing, but it is not your only recourse to the traps that have been set for us.
I have sons that I love. I cannot say 'Let it burn!' Neither can you! There must be people that you love, children you want to see grow, fall in love, and love their own kids... Do not give up on them, even if you find it difficult to set yourself free from the blinders that prevent you from seeing the good in the world.
The Yellow Jackets aren't giving up. They're not soldiers, Machiavellian plotters, or banksters. They're just people like you and me that came to that point you are at, and I have been to, and just stood up and said 'Enough!' It is not sufficient to simply keep doing what we have done before if we want things to change. Despair comes when we cannot see how anything we can do can make that change - but when we act as communities, as the Yellow Jackets act as communities, what we do is multiplied by tens of thousands, and our vision of our personal contribution falls far short of what we can do when we multiply it by tens of thousands.
What you do does matter. It matters to your friends and neighbors. So many of us don't even know our neighbors, have never stopped over with a plate of cookies, or a simple housegift to welcome them. The best thing we can do is to change that, to make our neighbors our friends, and then we can begin to act as communities, to feel their hurt when they are harmed, and to provide support to them when they despair - and get support when we succumb to it ourselves.
When troubles come, they overwhelm us when we are alone, and we despair. When we have people to rally to, that rally us in turn, we are triumphant. I cannot speak to your personal circumstances, but a decade ago I lost all I owned and despaired. For a long time I did not rally. I escaped people to consider, and experience my grief.
A couple years ago I came out of the woods, and began to participate in communities. I found my way here, and speak what I think matters that can help people to vanquish their obstacles, and rise above their challenges. You're here, and if you can't reach out to neighbors, friends, or family where you live, there are other places to live. Here you can also reach out and form or join communities, find new friends, and even join family.
Don't let despair overcome you while you breathe. Take stock, reconcile your grief, and then act to surmount the challenges.
Peace.