On the sidelines of the Cesars, demonstrators tried to invade the red carpet

• The 45th César ceremony was held Friday evening at the Salle Pleyel, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris.
• Feminist activists protested outside the hall against the honor of Roman Polanski, accused of rape by twelve women in total.
• Some tried to invade the red carpet with smoke bombs, but were rejected by the police.

The meeting was given around 6.30 p.m., in front of the La Belle poule brasserie, at the corner of avenue Hoche and rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré in Paris. We are a few dozen meters from the entrance to the Salle Pleyel, along the gates that line the red carpet of the 45th Cesar ceremony.

Adèle *, Céline * and Noémie * arrive on site at the appointed time. They are calm, but tense. They are part of a group of feminist activists who have been preparing for several weeks an action to protest against the twelve nominations for the César 2020 for the film by Roman Polanski, accused of rape and sexual assault. Their goal: "fuck the zbeul [disorder] to the Caesars," says Adele, 24. She hid smoke bombs under her coat. Activists plan to invade the red carpet.

"We should have brought signs for Adèle Haenel"

The three young women easily passed the police check. They join comrades already present, calm, but tense. Few words are exchanged, everything has been planned in advance. The young women try to blend into the crowd, without attracting the attention of the dozen policemen posted along the metal barriers. "What star do you want to see today?" Asks Adèle, jokingly with her friends. "We should have brought signs for Adèle Haenel," replies a young blonde woman in the same tone. Further on, in front of the barriers, a small group of women from another collective chants a few slogans, signs in hand.

A small crowd forms, always in the same tense atmosphere, along the red carpet. These women are between 20 and 30 years old on average. They come from various feminist collectives, some are "splicers", others came with friends, and there are even women from other European countries. They all have in common that they are "very angry". "We would have liked to prevent the ceremony, but we knew that it would not happen," said Adele the next day. "We wanted to say that we did not agree with the appointment of Polanski, and show that we are no longer afraid of this society which means that rapists can be crowned best director, that they can have a career and continue to be respected as artists. "

Smoke on the red carpet

6:40 pm. "We are waiting for the signal," warns Noémie, 27. Some activists have hidden their faces with a scarf, a scarf. Suddenly, a voice louder than the others is heard: "No honor for rapists! The slogan was taken up by some of the demonstrators present. Adèle and Céline exchange a look: it was not planned.

The signal is launched at 6:50 p.m .: a woman lights a red smoke flare. The crowd of activists rushes against the barrier. There are several dozen, maybe a hundred. Some have smoke bombs in their hands, which they try to throw on the red carpet. The others form a mass, which presses against the barriers, until it tips over. Some girls manage to get to the other side. But already, the police are fighting back. The smell of tear gas fills the air tinged with red. The demonstrators are forced to back down. They mass in front of La Belle poule , where the employees try to protect their terrace. At the beginning of Avenue Hoche, in front of the chic brasserie, CRS and feminist activists face each other. They shout: “Polanski rapist, guilty cinema! ".

At 7:00 am 10 rue du fbg st Honoré, feminist activists tried to invade the red carpet of # César2020 with smoke bombs. Their goal: to prevent the ceremony. They were quickly repulsed by the CRS and retreated onto Avenue Hoche. pic.twitter.com/b40zkTFpTg

"Give Caesar for the plain-clothes keufs!" "

The action itself lasted ten minutes at most. The face-to-face meeting with the police will last almost an hour. The CRS manage to push back the demonstrators. They gather in the middle of avenue Hoche. The angry slogans are linked: "Rapist, you're fucked up, the women are on the street!" "; "Solidarity with women around the world"; "Kerosene is not for planes, it is to burn rapists and murderers"; mixed with anti-capitalist slogans or against the police. After twenty minutes, some of them go up avenue Hoche; they descend quickly: two of their comrades were arrested. The face to face resumes, with cries of "Lock Polanski!" Free our comrades! ". Some feminists who were in Place des Ternes, including members of the La Barbe collective, joined them; the demonstration turns into a sit-in. There are at least 150 women there, maybe 200, and less than a dozen men.

They finally went back down to the CRS after learning that their comrades arrested were still there. They continue to chant "Lock Polanski, free our comrades", in a sit-in. # Cesar2020 pic.twitter.com/8AOyl9IZ5Z

The demonstrators still chain the slogans. "Give Caesar for the plain-clothes keufs!" The anti-fascist slogan "Siammo tutti antifascisti" (we are all anti-fascists) is taken up in chorus; two CRS comment: "" Siammo ", that means" we are "in Italian, I think". One of their colleagues, annoyed, points to those who still have their faces masked. "He was screaming" crime! offense! ", Said Noémie, 24, at the end of the demonstration. Since the law of April 10, 2019, the fact of "voluntarily concealing all or part of his face without legitimate reason" during a demonstration has become a crime punishable by one year of imprisonment and a € 15,000 fine.

"For Polanski, we are upset, we are disappointed, but we are not shocked"

A little before 8 p.m., the demonstrators learned that their comrades were elsewhere. They leave, up to the avenue de Wagram, where they meet the demonstrators of the Place des Ternes. Several hundred people invade the avenue, blocking traffic. Some drop garbage cans. A lady driving a small white car finds herself stranded. She gestures to demonstrators, who approach to chat with her. She tells them that she is going to the Caesars, that she is a voter ... But that she did not vote for Roman Polanski, proof in support. The girls who spoke to him exclaim "Let it pass!" », And the driver leaves to applause.

The demonstrators in the rue du fbg St Honoré finally went on a wild demonstration. They found other https://t.co/Mp0gAVdKaN. Feminist cries and slogans echo on avenue de Wagram. # Cesar2020 pic.twitter.com/yo0HxZaVW6

It is 8:45 p.m. when Adèle, Noémie and Céline decide to return, and their group of friends heads for the metro. Avenue de Wagram, the demonstration framed by two barrages of police forces disperses little by little. Some demonstrators will remain around the Salle Pleyel all evening, then will demonstrate outside Fouquet's after the announcement of Roman Polanski's victory. “For Polanski, we are upset, we are disappointed, but we are not shocked. This institution feels threatened, it feels that it will soon fall, “said Adèle this Saturday. She says she is “very satisfied with the action. Everyone saw that we were angry! "As for Noémie, she finds" great that we were so numerous. I hope we can continue to come together like this to fight against the culture of rape. "

* The first names have been changed.

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• Society
• Roman Polanski
• Feminism
• Caesar 2020
• Cinema