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In the winter of 1997-98, Pierre Bourdieu called an unemployment movement ‘a social miracle’, arguing that its first achievement was its very existence: ‘It wrests the unemployed and with them all precarious workers, whose numbers are growing by the day, out of invisibility, isolation, silence ... out of non-existence.’

The sudden emergence of the gilets jaunes, just as miraculous and far more powerful, demonstrates the gradual impoverishment of an ever-larger section of society. It also displays a feeling of absolute defiance — almost disgust — towards the usual channels of representation: the movement has no leaders or spokespeople, it rejects political parties, it keeps its distance from unions, ignores intellectuals and hates the media. This probably explains its resilience and popularity.

In this ebook : • Serge Halimi & Pierre Rimbert, ‘France’s class wars’

• Pierre Souchon, ‘Yellow vests don’t do politics’

• Laurent Bonelli, ‘“Gilets jaunes” shock the politicians’

• Philippe Descamps, ‘Yellow vests for climate justice’

Taking Sides is a series of ebooks published by Le Monde diplomatique. In each ebook, we are releasing the most significant articles from our English-language archive since 1996, on a topic that merits your attention.