Thousands of students and teachers marched through Athens on Wednesday, demanding greater public investment in education as rising rents and living costs squeeze young people and families across Greece, in protests organizers say were directly inspired by the ongoing unrest in France.
Demonstrators called for improved school facilities, smaller class sizes and more affordable student housing, pointing to deteriorating infrastructure including falling plaster, broken windows and faulty radiators in school buildings across the country.
Police estimates of the Athens turnout varied, with Reuters putting the crowd at roughly 10,000 people across rallies in Athens and its suburbs, while the Associated Press cited police figures of at least 5,000 in the capital alone. Additional demonstrations were reported in Thessaloniki, Patras and other Greek cities.
Protesters explicitly framed their movement as connected to unrest in France and Spain, chanting "From Greece to France, we want public, free education" as they marched, underscoring a sense of shared grievance spreading across multiple European countries.
The protests come against a backdrop of squeezed household finances, with average monthly pay in Greece remaining around €1,500 even as housing costs have priced many young people out of city centers, compounding frustration over underfunded public services.
The cross-border solidarity on display in Athens suggests youth-led frustration over living costs and public education funding is increasingly being understood by demonstrators themselves as a shared European problem rather than an isolated national one.
