There were tens of thousands of demonstrators in the streets this Sunday to protest against the immigration law

Marche contre la loi Immigration de Gérald Darmanin ce 21 janvier 2024 à Paris. MAXPPP – Luc Nobout

Ce dimanche 21 janvier 2024, des dizaines de milliers de manifestants sont descendus dans les rues de l'Hexagone afin de protester contre la loi immigration adoptée en décembre dernier.

Several tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered this Sunday in several French cities to protest against the immigration law adopted in December by Parliament and examined by the Constitutional Council which must deliver its verdict on Thursday.

Protesters by the thousands

In Paris, Bordeaux, Lille and even Rennes, French people mobilized against the immigration law adopted in Parliament after recourse to a Joint Joint Commission.

In the capital, undocumented workers gathered on the Place du Trocadéro, opposite the Eiffel Tower. "When we work, we can be mistreated at work because we are afraid of losing the job we have. We work, the overtime we do, if we don't get paid, we can't complain. If you complain, we'll fire you", said Talibé Dramé, 25 years old and an undocumented worker in construction.

Sophie Binet, general secretary of the CGT, declared on X that nearly 150,000 people marched throughout France. The Ministry of the Interior puts forward the figure of 75,000 participants.

A controversial law

The adoption of the immigration law was criticized by the left and even part of the majority while the National Rally claimed a "victory ideological".

One of the most controversial points of the text concerns the payment of social benefits to foreigners in a legal situation, ultimately subject to a five-year waiting period for people not working, what its detractors consider to be the illustration of an unacceptable "national preference".