• An association has just sued the city of Nice, and 9 other municipalities, for not having respected the Toubon law.

  • The latter, which dates from 1994, requires that "any inscription or announcement affixed or made on the public highway, in a place open to the public or in a means of public transport and intended for the information of the public must be formulated in the language French”.

  • The “I Love Nice” structure was erected in tribute to the victims of the July 14 attack.

    Mayor Christian Estrosi then described this association and its “provocation” as “despicable” in “full trial in Paris”.

“I Love Nice”.

This is Christian Estrosi's response to the "ignoble Observatoire des libertés", this association for the defense of the French language which has launched 10 legal actions against as many municipalities, including Nice, for their use of words in English which do not does not respect the Toubon law.

The hashtag installed on the Rauba Capeu quay, which has become a brand and a reference with more than 682,000 mentions on the networks, is targeted but it is not the only one.

“We are not attacking the structure as such but all the communication of the city”, specifies Louis Maisonneuve, president of the association and engaged “for many years in this fight”.

He nevertheless believes that "this statue" should become "J'aime Nice", be "translated into other languages" or quite simply "be removed" to "respect French identity".

A strong symbol for the relatives of the victims of July 14

But the anger of the mayor of Nice, who describes this procedure as "provocation", is explained in particular by the timing.

“We are in the middle of the trial for the attack in Paris,” he recalls.

This structure was erected in tribute to the victims, two and a half months after the July 14 attack which left 86 dead and hundreds of victims.

"It has all its meaning in this place and with this language", affirms Gilles Povigna, who had participated in its production with France Festivités.

"The city wanted a strong message that was understandable around the world," he explains.

The location overlooks the Promenade des Anglais, the Baie des Anges, where the terrorist passed with his truck.

The Niçois, from the 4th generation of revelers, adds: “We simply responded to the request of the town hall at that time.

And as people from Nice, it touched us, it made sense.

I would have liked to do it for another occasion.

»

He emphasizes that originally, it was not “an advertising object to make Nice known internationally” or “for tourists”.

He says he does not "really have an opinion on the controversy" but nevertheless specifies: "Before wanting to make a revolution on a word, you have to find out because there are strong symbols for certain people and that of the hashtag resonates for many, especially for those who lost a loved one that day.

»

The Festival of Lights in Lyon and the museums of Saint-Tropez

But the president of the Observatory of Freedoms, who claims not to attack the victims of the Nice attack, in particular because he had warned the city a year ago, will go all the way to enforce the articles 3 and 4 of the Toubon law, which dates from 1994.



Among the other municipalities targeted, Lyon for its communication on the Festival of Lights, only in “American English” but also two museums in Saint-Tropez.

For its part, the city of Roubaix has just removed the inscription in English from its velodrome.

Louis Maisonneuve announces that an additional “fifteen similar proceedings” will be filed in 2023.

Sport

Nice: Red and black on the seaside to support the Aiglons

Miscellaneous facts

Nice: The city files a complaint after anti-police inscriptions on the #IloveNice structure

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