Summer looking chaotic for French youngsters

What is it like to be young in France right now? Between the surprise elections, the Olympic/Paralympic Games, the baccalaureate, the Euro, and the depressing weather, summer is eventful to say the least. First, the election saga that began when Emmanuel Macron announced the surprise dissolution of the National Assembly caused a real rollercoaster of emotions. Faced with the potential victory of the National Rally after the first round, young people massively engaged, particularly on social media, to block the far-right. Personalities such as Léna Situations, Aya Nakamura, and Squeezie called on their audiences to go to the polls to avoid a political catastrophe. This was followed by the unexpected victory of the New Popular Front, which elated Parisians, with many emotional reactions shared on social media. However, the turmoil continues as the new National Assembly struggles to agree on a name for the position of Prime Minister. In this context of political uncertainty, disaster is presumed, as analyzed by The Guardian in its article titled «France contemplates chaos after the general election with no clear winner and the Olympics just weeks away.»

The Olympic Games, which are supposed to be a period of celebration, gathering, and pride, have only accumulated scandals and fueled the anger of locals. The displacement of CROUS students, exorbitant metro ticket prices, the Seine unfit for swimming... The list is endless. All these calamities have given rise to a proliferation of memes mocking the Olympics. The latest trend features Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castera diving into the Seine while studies have warned about the poor water quality, completely advising against swimming. Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris, also announced that she would dive into the river to prove the associations' results wrong. The internet responded with «Crotte en Seine», a plan to defecate in the Seine before the mayor's dive. More recently, new memes have flourished about the fact that police officers in charge of Olympic security, who are staying in CROUS residences, have denounced unacceptable living conditions while students live there all year round...

It seems that these posts allow Gen Z and Millennials to laugh at disastrous situations as well as share their grievances with the internet in the face of a government that disregards its citizens. While «summer» should rhyme with festivals, terraces, and sunshine, the weather has not been kind to France. The Musilac festival was literally flooded by torrential rains last weekend. At our Belgian neighbors, the camping area of the Les Ardentes festival, where many French people went, turned into a pool. «It is prescribed, that for July 15 and the months of August, September, and we will extend into October, that the rain ceases and that a light breeze and bright sunshine replace it.» we can read in the decree published on social media, which made many laugh. This summer, the French youth must therefore follow political news, navigate the chaos of the Olympic Games, and try their best to enjoy summer despite unstable weather.