The pose that made Abu Sayeed a symbol of fearless resistance in Bangladesh’s July 2024 uprising, arms spread wide in front of police guns, has now been seen in France. Footage of French protesters standing the same way before police, arms outstretched and chests forward, has spread across social media around the world.
In protests under way in France, young demonstrators were seen facing the country’s riot police, with their water cannon, tear gas, shields and guns, with both arms stretched out to their sides. One video shows a protester walking calmly towards armed police with arms spread. Within moments others join him shoulder to shoulder in the same pose, chanting slogans.
Social media users say the open-arms gesture Abu Sayeed made when he faced the bullets of an autocratic government outside Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur on 16 July 2024 has become a universal language of courage against state repression.
The scenes from France show how one young man’s sacrifice on the streets of Rangpur has become a symbol of popular defiance well beyond Bangladesh. Analysts say Abu Sayeed is no longer a name tied to one country: across borders, languages and cultures, he has become an enduring inspiration for people anywhere who stand up against injustice.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report