'We are all Gisèle': French women rise up against 'rape culture' during Gisèle Pelicot trial
They line up in front of a courthouse in southeastern France, from morning to evening, and have gathered in the thousands in cities across the country. They hold signs reading, "one rape every six minutes," "not all men but always a man," and "giving in is not consenting."
They chant: "Rapist we see you, victim we believe you."
Women across France are rallying in support of Gisèle Pelicot, a 72-year-old reluctant icon whose husband is on trial in the city of Avignon for systematically drugging her and inviting dozens of men, 50 of whom are now his co-defendants, into their home to rape her over nearly a decade.
The shocking case has sparked what many women in France call a long-overdue reckoning over "rape culture" and systemic sexism in the way the judicial system handles sexual violence.
"French society, like all patriarchal society, doesn't like women and doesn't defend them," said Anissa Rami, a 28-year-old freelance journalist from Paris.
On September 14, feminist organizations organized rallies in at least 30 cities in response to the case. They converged on Place de la Republique in Paris, where thousands of demonstrators chanted, “We are all Gisèle!” Protests stretched as far as Brussels in neighboring Belgium.
Alexandra Lachowsky, a board member of Women for Women France, an organization focused on ending gender-based violence against migrant women, called it "a real moment of unity."
"There were men, there were women, children, elders," she said.
"People were angry," said Elsa Labouret, a spokesperson for feminist organization Osez le Féminisme! (Dare to be Feminist), which helped to organize the Paris protest.
Gisèle Pelicot has emerged as "such an icon, such an important figure," she said.
The case has put into the spotlight a growing problem with rape in France. The number of sexual assault victims in France increased by 33% in 2021 and nearly doubled from 2017, according to a government report. Women made up 89% of rape victims, while 96% of sexual violence perpetrators were men.
But out of almost 35,000 rapes recorded that year, just over 10% were prosecuted, and fewer than 5% resulted in a conviction. And the vast majority of rape or attempted rape victims − nine out of ten − never even file a complaint, the report found.
"Now everyone can see what feminists have always denounced," said Rami, who spoke at the Paris protest.
Women have written letters to Pelicot praising her bravery and signed petitions calling for change to the French judicial system's handling of rape cases.
The case "may be a turning point in French history and French justice," Léa Rotival, a 28-year-old nonprofit employee from Léon, told Paste BN.
51 men on trial for Pelicot's abuse
Gisèle Pelicot thought her five-decade marriage to Dominique Pelicot was a happy one. Then, a call from the police in 2020 upended her life.
Dominique Pelicot, 71, had been arrested for filming up women's skirts at a grocery store. When investigators seized his computer, phones, and other devices, they found roughly 300 photos and videos documenting Pelicot's abuse at the hands of dozens of men.
French authorities say Dominique Pelicot contacted the men, 50 of whom now stand trial alongside him, over an online chatroom. Aged 26 to 74, they include firemen, truck drivers, and tech workers – officials had to build a separate space to fit all the defendants into the courtroom, the New York Times reported.
They represent "Mr. Everybody," Rami said. "The only thing they are in common is men."
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'The justice system is complicit'
One slogan seen across demonstrators' signs – "shame must change sides."
To the women demonstrating in support of Gisèle Pelicot, it represents a cultural shift in how rape cases are perceived – shame belongs to the perpetrators, not the victim.
And for many, it is embodied in Pelicot's fearlessness and nonchalant attitude when confronting her accused rapists in the courtroom.
According to the French legal system, Pelicot could have chosen a private trial, but she instead decided to waive her anonymity.
Lachowsky believes she made the choice to "expose what's happening in society."
"It's extraordinary in the way that it exposes the ordinary," Lachowsky said. "It's a magnifying glass of our society and how dangerous it is for girls and women to just be girls and women and just to exist as themselves."
Arguments made by some defense lawyers have drawn criticism for "victim blaming."
One lawyer representing several defendants argued a client was not aware of the criminality of his acts in the Pelicot home. "There is rape, and then there's rape," he said, according to France24.
"Rape is rape, whether it's three minutes or an hour," Pelicot responded from the witness stand.
At one point, lawyers asked the court to show explicit photos of Pelicot, including close-ups of her crotch area, which they said raised questions about whether she was an alcoholic or complicit in "sex games" – Pelicot asked her daughter to leave the room as the photos were shown, according to news reports.
"I have felt humiliated while I've been in this courtroom," she said. She added at one point, "I understand why rape victims don't press charges."
Rami said, "Making victims feel guilty, suspecting them of lying, even in this case, with video to back it up... the questions are sexist and humiliating."
"For me and for many feminists, the justice system is complicit," she added.
'Rape culture'
Months before the Pelicot case swept into the conversation, France was grappling with other scandals variously compared to the #MeToo movement in the U.S. As in the American movement, which exposed a culture of sexual assault in Hollywood, it began with a round of allegations implicating celebrated men in France's movie industry.
French actress Judith Godrèche filed complaints in February against filmmakers Jacques Doillon and Benoît Jacquot, who she said groomed and raped her when she was 14. Both men have since been detained.
In June, Dominique Boutonnat, the head of France's cinema agency, was sentenced to three years in prison for sexually assaulting his godson.
And French actor Gerard Depardieu is set to be tried this month on years-old sexual assault allegations that date back to a 2021 film shoot – another actress has also accused him of raping her in 2018. French President Emmanuel Macron and other French celebrities drew widespread outrage for their support of the disgraced star.
French women say it's evidence of a wider problem.
"This kind of culture is everywhere," Rotival said. It's present in "the ways women are considered when they go to tell what happened to them to a police officer, the way the government addresses the issue of violence against women."
Now, Pelicot case pops up in France "everywhere you go, every dinner you attend, every conversation that you have," Lachowsky said.
"We are in the beginning, and it's already a big story," Rami said.
"It's a long fight," she added.
Contributing: Reuters