Paris protests leave city at standstill

The Eiffel Tower and several museums shut down in Paris on Thursday as union employees joined in nationwide strikes. Protesters gathered at the Gare du Nord railway station and marched across the city. Authorities guarded the presidential palace and carried out more than 3,000 precautionary checks.

Why the protests? Parisians are angry over the government’s plan to overhaul the national retirement plan. French President Emmanuel Macron wants to streamline the complicated system, but labor unions argue changes in pension calculations could make some workers lose money. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said authorities expected 245 protests nationwide and deployed about 6,000 security officers.

Dig deeper: Read Mindy Belz and Jenny Lind Schmitt’s report on how the fire at the Cathedral of Notre Dame highlighted social disunity in France.