The Attack

Less than five minutes after the students assemble in the Place de la Sorbonne, they are attacked by the police. Their banners are seized. Some students are arrested; many are beaten. The remainder arrange to reassemble later.

The afternoon is turning to dusk and fog is settling over the city when I reach the Champs Elysees. Blue-uniformed police armed with pistols and carrying makeshift wooden clubs are lined up along the sidewalks.