A common saying in France is “Truth arises from a conflict of opinions.” This year, the country found multiple sources of conflict crystallized in the fight against pension reform. The change, which was eventually railroaded through parliament and came into effect on September 1, raised the retirement age from sixty-two to sixty-four and will require workers to make forty-three years of contributions before they have the right to a full pension. Opposition to the law sparked massive social unrest.

Surveys said that 65 percent of France thought the government should withdraw the measure, and 81 percent of people under thirty-five were opposed to it. In the early months of 2023, millions marched in the streets, with the country’s two largest trade unions, the Confédération générale du travail (CGT) and the Confédération française démocratique du travail (CFDT), creating an alliance not seen for over a decade. All opposition parties, too, criticized the policy one way or another — some cautiously, others with bombast; some from the left, others from the right.

In the National Assembly, the strongest opposition to the passage of the bill came from the New Ecological and Social People’s Union (NUPES), the left-wing coalition led by Jean-Luc Mélenchon. MPs from his party, La France Insoumise (LFI), the largest member of the NUPES coalition, waged the fiercest battle against the bill, introducing a blizzard of thirteen thousand amendments to prevent a vote on the seventh article, which raises the retirement age to sixty-four. They also presented their own counterbill that would lower the retirement age to sixty, with forty years of contributions for a full pension and a minimum full pension payment of €1,600 a month.