> The French Constitution allows freedom of speech, but not freedom of assembly, and Americans are often confused by that. It is a subtle issue, but under Fren

> The French Constitution allows freedom of speech, but not freedom of assembly, and Americans are often confused by that. It is a subtle issue, but under French law assembling and protesting is covered under free speech, which is a human right. However, another principle is that all rights are limited when they are in conflict with other people’s fundamental rights, one of them being to live in peace. So in case of protests they have to register beforehand to ensure that there would be some police to prevent violence. That’s the theory anyway. They are not quite as murderous as American policemen, but French ones can also be violent and heavy handed. For the same reason some protests can be forbidden. Usually, it is very difficult as the local government needs to demonstrate a significant risk of unacceptable violence. It is easier these days (in the last 2 decades or so) since there are “exceptional” measures in force to limit terrorism. And of course now there are public health restrictions because of COVID.