© File Photo: Francoise Gulliot / AFP
Describing themselves as the Migrant Support Committee, the students issued a statement calling for "papers for all" and an end to the distinction between "economic migrants" and "political refugees."
The university building was occupied after students held a general assembly to discuss possible plans of action, according to the Immigrant Information and Support Group (GISTI), a French organization which aids foreigners in France.
Participants who posted information about the demonstration on Twitter claimed that at least one whole floor of the university building was occupied by approximately 200 students.
"For years, thousands of exiles have been abused by the authorities and forced to live on the streets," GISTI wrote on its website. The immigrant advocacy group, which has been highly critical of French president Emmanuel Macron's migrant policy, said the country's "so-called reception centers" for migrants actually serves as "sorting centers" and are the "first step" towards the mass expulsion of migrants from France.
In a letter published online, French academics, teachers and researchers also expressed solidarity with undocumented students. Further demonstrations in front of the Ministry of Higher Education had been planned for Wednesday.
Comment: Nothing wrong with expressing solidarity for people who found themselves in circumstances that forced them to leave their home countries. However, one day these students will grow up to realize that the issue is far too complicated to solve by 'giving papers to everyone' and may in fact create more problems - some in Europe are actually resenting this already. How about understanding first the causes of mass migration and demanding from their government foreign political and economic policies that help to mitigate it?