Title: Why the French are protesting
Headings: Yellow vests, blue vests and red scarves — Here’s why the French are protesting
Yellow vests, blue vests and red scarves — Here’s why the French are protesting
What’s going on in France?
How and why did protests start?
November 17
Why are they called Yellow Vests?
Why did protests escalate?
So, who are the Red Scarves?
What about the Blue Vests?
What has the government done about protests?
How is Macron doing?

Content: Why are they called Yellow Vests? The Yellow Vest moniker was borne from the fluorescent yellow safety vests worn by demonstrators. French law states that all motorists must carry a luminous yellow vest or face a fine, hence the apparel was readily available to anyone wanting to protest. People clashes with riot police during an anti-government demonstration called by the Yellow Vest movement on January 19, 2019. NurPhoto | NurPhoto | Getty Images
The protests have become synonymous with scenes of street clashes, violence and destruction to property but the majority of demonstrators are peaceful. There are various Facebook pages for different “Gilet Jaunes” (Yellow Vest) groups and while many protesters are ordinary working people, ranging from students and farmers, the movement has also attracted wider anti-government activists, anarchists and, ironically given the reason for the protests, environmentalists too. The biggest Facebook group, Compteur Officiel de Gilets Jaunes, says it has 1.86 million members. Yellow Vests have also become more politicized, calling for a “Citizens’ Initiative Referendum” (or RIC, a slogan often seen on protesters’ placards) calling for citizens to have the chance to vote on government policies. A Yellow Vest protester holds a placard calling for the RIC (Citizens Initiated Referendum). For the Act XI of the Yellow Vest movement, more than 10 000 people took to the streets of Toulouse for the anti-governement protest on January 26th 2019.