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    "original_url": "https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/10\/20\/world\/europe\/france-student-protests-slogan.html?algo=combo_bert_hl_sm_bd_unique_triton_clicks_decay_96_50_ranks_no_athletic&emc=edit_ufn_20261024&fellback=false&imp_id=3851048371088736&nl=from-the-times&pool=main-icymi-ls&req_id=3040064659737574&segment_id=228619&surface=ufn-icymi&variant=0_only_variant",
    "parsed_content": "Unrest in FranceliveUpdatesOct. 24, 2026, 1:47 p.m. ET10m agoWhat to KnowHow Movement BeganRiot SuspectsLooters in MarseilleAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTSupported bySKIP ADVERTISEMENTStudent Protesters in France Have a Strange New Slogan. What Does It Mean?\u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres\u201d has appeared on signs at recent demonstrations. It doesn\u2019t make much sense (it means, \u201cIn the name of God, it\u2019s the darkness\u201d) but is seen as shorthand for a generational divide.Listen \u00b7 6:05 min Share full articleVideoFrance\u2019s Student Protests Have a New SloganStudent protesters in France are rallying around a new slogan: \u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres.\u201d The phrase is a mash-up of \u201cin the name of God\u201d and \u201cit\u2019s the darkness.\u201dCreditCredit...Stephane Mahe\/ReutersBy Zane IrwinOct. 20, 2026See more of our coverage in your search results.Encuentra m\u00e1s de nuestra cobertura en los resultados de b\u00fasqueda. Add The New York Times on GoogleAgrega The New York Times en Google As hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets across France this past weekend in support of student protesters, many displayed a somewhat mystifying rallying cry on their cardboard signs: \u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres.\u201dThe phrase, a mash-up of the Islamic blessing \u201cIn the name of God\u201d and the French phrase \u201cIt\u2019s the darkness,\u201d may make little sense on the surface.But it has become a symbol of a generational rift since young people began protesting last month against lackluster school resources \u2014 demonstrations that evolved into widespread unrest this past weekend.Where did the phrase emerge?The sentence seems to have first been used on Snapchat by someone who was seeking entry to a private chat room where student protest organizers gathered.AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTThe poster addressed Snapchat users with the greeting \u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres,\u201d a seemingly nonsensical phrase that appeared to mimic the colloquial blend of Arabic and French that young people in France sometimes use.The writer then added, \u201cWe are going to break everything.\u201dThe writer seems to have sent the message multiple times under different profiles, using names like Mamadou and Abdellah and accounts that displayed Algerian flag emojis.Other Snapchat users, finding the phrasing funny, made screenshots of the messages and posted them on social media. We haven\u2019t been able to verify their origin.What happened next?Many young people suspected the messages came from law enforcement officials who were clumsily trying to infiltrate the student protest movements.Demonstrators quickly adopted \u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres\u201d as a sardonic slogan meant to mock the authorities\u2019 attempt to stifle their cause.AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTIt is now seen as shorthand for longstanding tensions between law enforcement officials and protesters, especially students and people of color. The children of immigrants from France\u2019s former colonies, Black and Arab French people have long reported being discriminated against \u2014 and, as the messages seem to illustrate, misunderstood \u2014 by the authorities.Asked for comment, France\u2019s Interior Ministry did not address whether its agents had used the phrase. But it acknowledged that law enforcement officials sometimes assume online personas to communicate with people suspected of organizing unlawful activities during protests.\u201cIn this context, the investigator has the option of creating a pseudonym,\u201d the ministry said in a statement, to \u201cextract and retain communications on persons likely to be the perpetrators of these offences and any evidence that may be used in legal proceedings.\u201dWhy did this strike such a chord?To student protesters, the awkward wording seemed to evoke the generational divide between their movement and a government that has largely refused their demands.\u201cNo young person talks like that,\u201d Sabrine Kharbach, a spokeswoman for a prominent French student union, said. \u201cYoung people have reclaimed this phrase to point out that attempts to monitor and infiltrate their movements do not go unnoticed, and to assert their ability to organize in spite of them.\u201dAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTSadanee Sabadi, a university student in Bordeaux who has joined the protests, said in an interview that the Snapchat messages betrayed a \u201cprejudice\u201d about the types of people who officers believed were setting up blockades or aiming to \u201cbreak everything.\u201d Ph\u00e8dre Qu\u00e9mener, a high school student in Paris, said that \u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres\u201d had become a national joke because \u201cit is such a terrible impersonation of a young person.\u201dShe added, \u201cThis is seen as an example of racism because it implies that the people who are going to vandalize property are Arab.\u201dHow has it spread beyond France?\u201cBismillah, c\u2019est les t\u00e9n\u00e8bres\u201d has been featured in similar demonstrations in Belgium and Germany.Greta Thunberg, a Swedish environmental activist, repeated it in a video posted by an Instagram account that expressed solidarity with the student movement. In the video, Ms. Thunberg flashed other Gen Z gestures, including one associated with \u201c6-7,\u201d a meme that also became popular because of its absurdity.The use of the new slogan mirrors the grim humor baked into the Cockroach movement in India, which has also been led by students calling for a better education system. Protesters named their movement after an insult directed at them by India\u2019s top judge, who described young and unemployed Indians as \u201cparasites\u201d and \u201ccockroaches.\u201dAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTHow did the protests start?The student demonstrations began last month, sweeping across hundreds of French schools as protesters called for improvements to crumbling facilities, more teachers, smaller class sizes and less intense schedules.Many demonstrations remained peaceful, but others descended into violence, as participants set fire to or ransacked at least 24 schools, leading to roughly 8,000 arrests, according to the government. The protests gradually merged with a national movement of labor unions and other campaign groups, leading to countrywide protests this past weekend that were overshadowed by widespread rioting.The police\u2019s forceful response has helped galvanize the protesters.France\u2019s official police watchdog is investigating at least 34 accusations of police misconduct during the protests since last month. The cases include that of a 14-year-old boy who was maimed by a tear-gas grenade that an officer fired at close range.AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT"
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