PARIS, France — Tens of thousands of people marched Sunday in cities around Europe for May Day protests to honor workers and shame governments into doing more for their citizens.
In France, protesters shouted slogans against newly elected President Emmanuel Macron. Tensions erupted in Paris, as some demonstrators smashed windows at some banks, a fast-food restaurant and a real estate agency.
French police moved in, firing rounds of tear gas. That failed to stop a woman from attacking a firefighter trying to douse a street fire. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said 45 people had been detained so far, including the young woman.
Eight police officers were injured, he said, calling the perpetrators of the violence “thugs” who were trying “to stop the right to demonstrate.”
In France, the May Day rallies aimed to show the centrist Macron the opposition that he could face in his second five-year term. Opposition parties are looking to break his government’s majority in France’s parliamentary election in June.
The Paris march was dominated by far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, who placed third in the first round of the presidential vote and is deep in talks with other leftist parties in France, including the once-dominant Socialists who are struggling to exist.
Some 250 marches and protests were being held around France. All were pressing Macron for policies that put people first and condemning his plan to raise France’s retirement age from 62 to 65. Macron says that’s the only…
