Khanna blames wealth inequality, not immigration, for youth protests in Europe

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on Sunday blamed wealth inequality, not immigration from the “global south,” as the reason behind the youth protests igniting across Europe, including in France .

“From the high schools of France to the streets of Madrid to the universities of Tirana, young people are telling their governments the same thing: in an age of massive wealth inequality, they want a future they can believe in,” Khanna wrote on the social platform X .

Khanna said French students and teachers are taking to the streets “asking for safe schools, enough teachers and smaller classes.”

“In Spain, for affordable rent and housing,” he continued. “In Albania, for good jobs and an end to corruption.”

He took a swipe at Vice President Vance, who on Saturday accused “western liberals” who “imported the third world … in the name of diversity and compassion” while ignoring “fundamental questions of assimilation and compatibility.”

“@JDVance says this is what happens when a nation lets in too many immigrants from the global south,” Khanna wrote. “He is not just morally wrong, but misreading the moment. The is what happens when nations let wealth and power accumulate in the hands of a few. This is what happens when young people lose hope in their future.”

Khanna called on Americans to “listen to our young” and said the U.S. needs “an economic and political transformation.”

“America’s Next New Deal,” he concluded, referring to former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s transformative economic policies enacted in the years after the Great Depression hit in 1929.

President Trump has also made the unfounded claim that the protests are because of “ out of control mass migration ” and “Islam wanting to take over a once great Country.” Trump and Vance echoed other conservatives who blame the European Union’s immigration policies for the protests.

Hundreds of thousands of French protesters, including union members and student organizations, took to the streets in marches against the rising cost of living and poor conditions in schools. Some demonstrations across France turned violent as protesters clashed with police and businesses faced fires and looting.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez on Saturday accused the protesters of being “extremely violent, radical far-left groups” who are targeting city halls and local government offices, The Associated Press reported.

Nearly 2,400 people have been arrested in connection with Saturday’s protests, with nearly 1,000 police and gendarmes injured, including seven who were severely hurt, Nuñez said.

Nuñez told Time magazine on Monday that police “lost control” of some cities over the weekend and that there was a “lack of anticipation” prior to the start of demonstrations on Saturday. He said he offered his resignation to French President Emmanuel Macron, saying he “felt responsible” for the protests spreading.

Macron refused his resignation because of “the need for a continuous command of the police, the Élysée Palace told the outlet. The president on Sunday condemned what he called in a televised speech “unbridled violence,” Le Monde reported .