Louvre Access Blocked by Students in Paris Protest Over Police Repression
On October 19, Monday, students obstructed entry to the Musée du Louvre in Paris to express solidarity with secondary school students and to protest against police repression. Approximately 50 participants from the École du Louvre, along with members from the École des Beaux-Arts, took part in the demonstration. The Louvre's administration indicated that the protest was not officially associated with the museum. The Confédération Générale du Travail (CGT) backed the protest, estimating that the museum would remain closed until at least noon. This demonstration was part of ongoing student protests that began in mid-September and followed a national movement addressing rising living costs. The École du Louvre, which specializes in art history, has experienced labor disputes since a jewelry theft on October 19, 2025, prompting staff strikes for improved conditions.
Key facts
- Access to the Musée du Louvre in Paris was blocked by students on Monday, October 19
- Around 50 students from the École du Louvre participated, joined by members of the École des Beaux-Arts
- The CGT backed the mobilization without directly participating in the blockade
- The museum was expected to remain closed until at least noon, according to the CGT
- The protest occurred exactly one year after a jewelry theft at the Louvre on October 19, 2025
- The action came two days after a national mobilization against the high cost of living that ended in riots in several French cities
- The École du Louvre is located inside the museum and teaches art history, archaeology, epigraphy, anthropology and museology
- A strike notice filed by unions in December 2025 had not been formally withdrawn amid the absence of a final agreement with the Ministry of Culture
Entities
Artists
- Christophe Leribault
- Florence and the Machine
- Stan Douglas
- Jean-Baptiste Carobolante
- Emmanuel Macron
Institutions
- Musée du Louvre
- École du Louvre
- École des Beaux-Arts
- CGT
- Ministère de la Culture
- AFP
- Le Figaro
- Dasartes
- École d'architecture Paris-Malaquais
- Beaux Arts
- Louvre
- École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts
- Art Basel Paris
- Grand Palais
- Jeu de Paume
- FIAC
- Frieze London
- Hyperallergic
- The Art Newspaper
- CFDT
- Paris Police Prefecture
- Interior Ministry
- Haute École des arts du Rhin
- ENSAAMA
- École Supérieure d'Art de Dunkerque
- Parcoursup
Locations
- Paris
- France
- Place du Carrousel
- Créteil
- Lyon
- Limoges
- Strasbourg
- Dunkerque
- Tourcoing