A sprawling web of dozens of organizations, including revolutionary socialist groups and Palestinian-solidarity movements, has been amplifying the violent riots and protests tearing through France, according to a Fox News Digital report released Monday.
“America’s Newsroom” anchor Bill Hemmer highlighted the findings on air, reading directly from the report, which branded the network of groups “Chaos Inc.”
“Of the 54 organizations identified in the October protest ecosystem, 16 — or only about one in three — are student or youth organizations, including communist youth groups and a Muslim student organization,” Hemmer said. “The remaining 38 include adult-led communist groups, labor unions, political parties, revolutionary-left organizations, advocacy groups and international propaganda outlets.”
Put simply, the large majority of the groups tied to the October unrest are not student organizations at all.
The findings cut against claims that the chaos has been driven strictly by frustrated students, which was the dominant narrative when the demonstrations first erupted.
Among the groups named in the report are the Gilets jaunes, or “Yellow Vests,” a radical far-left group that led protests alongside other organizations over the weekend, and La France Insoumise (LFI), or France Unbowed, a far-left socialist political party.
According to the report, far-left socialist and communist organizations had a hand in organizing and amplifying France’s student revolt from the very beginning. Those groups seized on grievances over school conditions as a pretext to mobilize a broader political fight against capitalism, government austerity, policing and military spending, the report said.
In other words, the report suggests the turmoil in the streets is about far more than conditions in French classrooms.
The Fox News Digital investigation follows shocking footage from this past weekend showing thousands of protesters and rioters looting businesses, attacking police officers and setting buildings ablaze. Among the structures torched was a historic town hall building in central France.
Fox News correspondent Stephanie Bennett reported on the carnage Sunday, revealing that more than 600 police officers were injured and nearly 2,000 rioters were arrested between Saturday and Sunday.
The staggering numbers underscore the scale of the violence that has gripped the country.
After walking viewers through the “Chaos Inc.” report, Hemmer turned to Tablet contributor Marc Weitzmann for an on-the-ground assessment of the destruction.
“France has never seen anything like it,” Weitzmann said.
Weitzmann made clear that the riots and protests involved far more than upset students. Those taking part, he said, included people who “hate” the nation.
He acknowledged that organized groups are playing a role in the unrest, but argued that the anger fueling it runs deeper.
“There certainly are some organizations behind it… but you know, you only weaponize people that can be weaponized,” Weitzmann said. “Part of the hatred, part of the anger, is genuine, and that’s the real problem of the country right now.”
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