In light of the historic gains made by the far right in the European elections and following Emmanuel Macron's irresponsible announcement that he would dissolve the National Assembly, it is urgent that we mobilize at all levels to defend women's rights, gender equality, and democratic values.
The European elections were marked by the unprecedented success of the far right, which won 38% of the votes cast in France. Of all the parties in Europe, the RN is the one that sends the most MEPs to the European Parliament. Less than an hour after the first results were announced, President Emmanuel Macron announced the dissolution of the National Assembly and the holding of early legislative elections within an extremely short time frame. The risk of the far right coming to power is real and the consequences would be immense, particularly for women, migrants, and LGBTQIA+ people. More broadly, democracy, social rights, and individual freedoms would be undermined. Observing what is happening in countries where far-right forces are in power is instructive in this regard, regardless of the continent. In Italy, these far-right forces threaten media pluralism and invite opponents of abortion into family planning centers. Members of the European Parliament from the Lega, Fratelli d'Italia, and some from Forza Italia have also refused to ratify the Istanbul Convention. In Argentina, populist President Javier Milei abolished the Ministry of Gender Equality and the National Institute Against Discrimination (INADI). He denies the scientific evidence on climate change and wants to repeal abortion rights. He has cut research funding and continues to discredit public universities. In the United States, Donald Trump's term in office has ended abortion rights and ruined decades of efforts in multilateral bodies to advance women's rights and the fight against climate change. This disastrous record does not seem to have discredited Donald Trump and the ultra-conservative American right, as he could win the November election—a sign that with the far right, leading by example does not work.
A campaign marked by the absence of women's rights and the trivialization of the far right
It was precisely to highlight these risks that Equipop published a report in mid-May a report with the unequivocal title "When the far right advances, women's rights retreat," in which we warned of the dangers associated with the rise of the far right. The weeks that followed unfortunately proved the feminists' warnings to be true. No mainstream media outlet took stock of the implications of these elections for women's rights and gender equality. On television, Jordan Bardella and Marion Maréchal spewed torrents of sexist and racist hatred, with little or no response from the media or other politicians present. On the contrary, Jordan Bardella benefited from unjustified media overexposure, while other leading candidates promoting feminist and environmentalist projects were marginalized.
Resist collectively
Macron's decision makes it likely that the RN will come to power for the first time in the history of the Fifth Republic. However, this is not inevitable. Feminist, solidarity-based, and transnational mobilizations are not waning, quite the contrary, as evidenced by the "My Voice, My Choice" initiative. In the short and long term, a general mobilization at all levels is now necessary. The media has a responsibility to stop trivializing the far right, to present it for what it is, and to invite feminist activists and researchers to present informed points of view. How can we continue to allow the RN to claim that sexual violence is mainly perpetrated by immigrants? Political parties outside the far right, particularly those that claim to defend women's rights and gender equality, have a responsibility to defeat the far right everywhere and avoid attacks that weaken progressive forces while the far right scores points. Alliances must be formed with this goal in mind. It is also their responsibility to highlight the RN's untenable positions on women's rights and gender equality: it is unacceptable for the issue of women's rights to be brought into the debate by the far right, and therefore for racist purposes, as has been the case for most of the European election campaign. Finally, it is the responsibility of citizens to go to the polls on June 30 and July 7. In the coming days, Equipop will continue its actions by sharing its analyses, calling on the media and political leaders, and joining forces with numerous community initiatives. For several days now, we have been mobilizing with the feminist coalition #AlertesFéministes. On June 23, we will sound feminist alarms throughout France to call for a united front against the far right and to vote en masse for a future that allows for the emancipation and freedom of all. In Poland, it was women and young people who removed the far right from power after eight years of sexist and anti-democratic policies. In France, too, we will resist!
* Illustration credit: Jessica Whitney Crowe x Fine Acts (modification of colors, text, and visual layout)
