High School in Nantes Suffers Knife Attack; Manon Aubry Criticizes Bruno Retailleau's Response, Labeling It Vulturous
The recent knife attack at a high school in Nantes strikes a chord as Manon Aubry, MEP for La France insoumise, expresses her feelings on the matter. The Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau, labeled the incident as a societal issue, while Aubry queries the need to label it as a symptom of lawlessness, pointing toward a pressing need for mental health support instead.
Raising the Alarm on Mental Health
Aubry underlines the current state of mental health among young people in the country and emphasizes the dire need for more mental health professionals to cater to the growing number of students. She highlights the concerning fact that one in two young people are anxious, and there's only one psychologist for every 1,500 students.
Retailleau, however, expresses concern that schools might sometimes "become places of lawlessness." His response is met with skepticism, as Aubry asserts the focus should be on preventing knives from being used, rather than talking about lawlessness and resorting to extreme security measures like installing turnstiles, which she deems "absolutely not the solution."
The Turnstile Debate
Prime Minister François Bayrou suggests installing turnstiles at the entrance of educational establishments as an option, sparking concern over the potential prison-like atmosphere they might create for students. Aubry argues that doing so would require schools to operate more like airports, costing €100,000 per establishment times 12,000 establishments in the country. With added costs for stricter controls, she foresees chaos outside schools, serving as potential targets for unstable individuals.
The Priority: Preventing Tragedies
For Aubry, discussions should revolve around ensuring that no student feels the need to take a knife to school and harm their classmates. She questions the feasibility of searching every student in the country and focuses on creating an environment in which students feel supported and cared for, allowing them to navigate their emotional challenges productively.
- Manon Aubry, MEP for La France insoumise, has raised concerns about the current state of mental health among French adolescents, stating that one in two young people are anxious, and there's only one psychologist for every 1,500 students.
- Bruno Retailleau, the Interior Minister, expressed concern about schools becoming places of lawlessness, but Aubry argued that the focus should be on preventing knives from being used, rather than focusing on lawlessness and implementing extreme security measures like installing turnstiles.
- Prime Minister François Bayrou suggested installing turnstiles at the entrance of educational establishments as an option, but Aubry argued against this, suggesting that it would cost €100,000 per establishment times 12,000 establishments in the country, potentially creating a prison-like atmosphere for students and serving as potential targets for unstable individuals.
- For Aubry, the priority should be on discussions that ensure no student feels the need to take a knife to school and harm their classmates, with a focus on creating an environment in which students feel supported and cared for, allowing them to navigate their emotional challenges productively.
