A bit about protests in European countries from the point of view of a social policy researcher. Despite the fact that they are directly related to the reduction of welfare states, these are not protests of the hungry for nothing or financial aid from the state. Why is education the source of stress? Several factors came together here. On the one hand, education is still a ticket to a better life, to higher chances of finding a well-paid job. And yet in recent years - if you look at the data on youth unemployment levels and the number of young people not in education and employment (NEET) - it hasn't been very good, even in the formerly prosperous countries of Western Europe. Economic inequality continues to grow, and research on social mobility in different countries shows that this growth is accompanied by the closing of opportunities for children and young people from lower social strata to reach higher strata. Hence the dissatisfaction with the recent increase in university tuition fees in Belgium. The differentiation of school education, financed from local budgets, has also been increasing in recent years in many countries - from conditions to quality. The latter determines the chances of getting a good professional education. On the other hand, school studies are more stressful because they are compulsory. Even if you want to work in a place where not much knowledge is required, for example, as a social worker or a taxi driver, or in the cafe that your parents manage, you are required to go to school and memorize a huge amount of information that is unnecessary for you. Because the state requires it. In poor areas, you will have to do this in overcrowded classrooms and deal with the frustration of overworked teachers. For young people, who, unlike their parents, have not yet lost faith in their ability to change the world for the better, their humiliating educational conditions are a very convincing argument to take to the streets.