World News: French Extremists Groups Use Violent Rhetoric To Grow Cause

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Category: World News - Europe

Published on Monday, 16 February 2026 12:13

Written by Olivier Longhi

Daily, the news is filled with the clashes between ultra-left and ultra-right groups confirming the growth of violent expressions of political antagonisms in a democracy itself plagued by multiple forms of violence, whether verbal, moral or psychological.

Without making the news on a daily basis, the clashes between ultra-left and ultra-right groups are in no way new, both being used to fighting in various parts of France, Lyon remaining an area where tensions are the strongest.

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What becomes more worrying, regardless of the death of one of the members of the ultra-right group, is the climate of violence that animates these groups, a climate that tends to spread to all spheres of society. Whether it is physical in its extreme expression, violence is first and foremost verbal and has now become a constituent element of everyday language. From schools to the benches of the National Assembly and urban spaces, violence is now commonplace, almost normal.

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Dignified Practices

However, this normality is in no way acceptable in a democracy, a system where, in essence and by definition, dialogue must take precedence, through dignified practices that respect the various parties. Is this the case to date? Obviously not. One thing is clear: social relations are plagued by verbal, psychological or moral violence, which in turn carries physical violence in the future.

In a climate of mistrust of the elites, the discrediting of political discourse and growing social tensions, violence seems to have become the solution to the ills that our contemporary societies are going through, the ultimate resort to the expression of a recurrent malaise that finds no way out. Encouraged by radical, exclusive and populist discourses, violence is growing and developing, feeding on the weaknesses of timid democracies, terrorized at the idea of hindering freedom of expression.

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Circumscribe and Soothe

But what democracy worthy of the name is capable of accepting that such violence, like the one that punctuated the streets of Lyon, is reproduced and spread? The answer is contained in the question. Because if the police and the judicial institution took up the case as soon as possible, it is now necessary to limit any excesses likely to disturb the serenity of public order and more broadly to re-establish the conditions for a healthy and peaceful collective dialogue.

Moreover, it will have escaped no one how much these clashes are being instrumentalized by those who consider themselves victims, the latter having not failed to stir up hatred and tensions. Some will judge this political manipulation and recuperation, with a political and basely electoral aim, as indecent, while a reflection on the expression of political antagonisms is necessary.

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Bio: Olivier Longhi has extensive experience in European history. A seasoned journalist with fifteen years of experience, he is currently a professor of history and geography in the Toulouse region of France. He has held a variety of publishing positions, including Head of Agency and Chief of Publishing. A journalist and recognized blogger, editor, and editorial project manager, he has trained and managed editorial teams, worked as a journalist for various local radio stations, was a press and publishing consultant, and was a communications consultant.