Protesters block Louvre museum to back student campaign

“We are proud to announce that we are blocking the world’s largest museum,” reads a leaflet seen by AFP and displayed near the Louvre, which was unable to open its doors as normal at 9am. Around 30,000 people visit the Paris museum every day.

According to management, the action, led by around 50 students from the École du Louvre, is not directly linked to the museum, which is simply being used “as an echo chamber”. However, the date coincides exactly with the first anniversary of the spectacular burglary that plunged the world’s most visited museum into a deep crisis.

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According to the CGT trade union, which supports the action but is not taking part, the museum will remain closed at least “until noon”.

Students from the École des Beaux-Arts are also involved in the action, which follows the high school protests that began in mid-September and comes two days after the major nationwide mobilisation against the rising cost of living, which descended into chaos in many French cities.

In their leaflet, the protesting students do not specifically refer to this action but frame their blockade as part of “the fight for the right to study, work and live freely in good conditions”.

Located within the museum grounds, the École du Louvre is a higher education institution offering courses in art history, archaeology, epigraphy, anthropology and museology, according to its website.

Over the past year, access to the Louvre has been disrupted several times by staff strikes that began after the October 19th, 2025 burglary and are demanding better working conditions and pay. The strike notice filed by the unions in December 2025 has still not been formally withdrawn, as no final agreement has been reached with the Ministry of Culture.

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