Brigitte Macron faces criticism after using sexist insult about activists

The French first lady’s team says she had intended to criticise a feminist group’s ‘radical method’ of protest.Published On 9 Dec 2025French First Lady Brigitte Macron is facing criticism after a video emerged of her using a sexist slur against feminist activists who disrupted the show of an actor-comedian once accused of rape.Macron’s team said on Tuesday that she had intended to criticise their “radical method” of protest.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3French #MeToo movement founder fined 20,000 euros for defamationlist 2 of 3#MeToo and the Weinstein verdict: What now for working women?list 3 of 3France remains ‘very sexist’: Watchdog sounds alarmend of listThe scene filmed on Sunday showed France’s first lady in discussion backstage at the Folies Bergère theatre in central Paris with actor Ary Abittan before a performance he was about to give.The previous night, feminist campaigners had disrupted his show, wearing masks of the actor bearing the word “rapist” and shouting, “Abittan, rapist!”A woman in 2021 accused the actor of rape, but in 2023, investigators dropped the case, citing a lack of evidence.Before Sunday’s performance, Macron is seen in the video, published by local media Public on Monday, asking him how he was feeling. When he said he was feeling scared, Macron was heard jokingly responding, using a vulgar expression in French, “If there are any stupid bitches, we’ll kick them out”.The feminist campaign group “Nous Toutes” (“All of Us”) said its activists disrupted Abittan’s show to protest what it described as “the culture of impunity” around sexual violence in France.The group later turned the insult into a hashtag on social media, #sallesconnes, and many shared it in a show of support.Among those was actor Judith Godreche, who has become a feminist icon since accusing two directors of sexually abusing her when she was a minor and calling for an end to such behaviour in France’s cultural sector.