Collages against feminicides (illustration).
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LODI Franck / SIPA
Laura Rapp was beaten, insulted and strangled by her ex-partner in front of their 2.5-year-old daughter.
"Abandoned by justice", the young woman launched a final appeal for help on Twitter in May 2019, relayed by many media and which accelerated the judicial treatment of the case.
"Social networks have allowed victims of domestic violence to be finally visible," says the thirty-something, who calls for a vast reform of the justice system.
" Help !
It is with these words that began the thread posted on May 14, 2019 on Twitter by Laura Rapp, a young woman victim of domestic violence after having escaped an attempted murder of her ex-spouse.
“Protect me!
Protect my daughter until the trial ”, proclaimed this insulted, beaten and strangled mother of a family under the eyes of her two and a half year old daughter.
His story, told on social networks, had moved public opinion, which was just beginning to take up the issue of domestic violence and feminicides.
Almost two years after this call for help, Laura Rapp publishes, this Thursday "Tweet or die" (Michalon editions), a book in which she tells of her long descent into hell, her difficulties in being recognized "as a victim" by justice, and hope finally found thanks to social networks.
20 Minutes
interviewed the young woman, aged 32, who today calls for a vast reform of the justice system "to better protect" the victims of domestic violence.
How are you today ?
Why did you want to write this book, which you are dedicating to your daughter?
After three years of legal battle, things are getting better… But there are still ups and downs.
The main thing is that my daughter is better today.
If I wanted to write this book, it is for her, for future generations.
To give them a message of hope and tell them that we must never give up, and continue the fight.
And it is also for all these women, victims like me of domestic violence.
We are many to have been victims of dysfunctions of justice, I am not a unique case in France.
This is what I wanted to tell in my book.
I wanted to speak to show that my story could touch anyone.
You tell of the hold of your ex-spouse, your long descent into hell and, above all, how justice abandoned you ...
I wanted to show what the phenomenon of influence was, which is at the heart of debates today [in cases of incest, rape, etc.], and show the hell that some women experience.
Even though we are talking about it a little more today, it is important to lift the veil on this reality.
Physical, psychological, institutional, economic violence… that's all that I wanted to describe and denounce.
People do not realize the ordeal that can be endured.
Putting words into words about what I experienced has relieved me enormously.
With this book, today I want to shake things up, change the system.
When you made that cry for help on Twitter, were you aware of the scale your business was going to grow?
Not for a second.
I was in a real state of despair, I had tried everything to protect myself, me and my daughter: large law firm, appeal to associations, arrest of local elected officials ... I no longer slept, I spent my nights in read the publications of feminist activists and victims' aid associations to hope to find a solution.
Until the day I decided to call one of them to ask her for help.
And it is this activist [Sophia Antoine] who advised me to tell my story on social networks, like an SOS, a bottle in the sea. I thought a lot, I weighed the pros and cons.
It was a final act of distress.
HELP !
[THREAD to unfold]
Survivor of an assassination attempt, in the presence of my 2-year-old daughter, justice turns its back on me.
Arrested and remanded in custody since April 2018, my torturer, made several requests for release which were all refused.
pic.twitter.com/qycpB8e7Nk
- Laura (@LauraetAlice) May 14, 2019
Within hours, your thread has been reshared thousands of times.
You explain today that Twitter "saved your life", accelerating the judicial treatment of your case ...
I wasn't expecting the fuss my thread caused at all.
I tweeted telling myself that maybe a journalist was going to see my publication, or maybe Marlène Schiappa's office.
But without any real hope… I didn't think for a single second of the impact this could have, the number of retweets or even the media exposure my story generated.
It was a bit of a miracle what happened.
I myself still don't understand why it got so big in just a few hours.
Everything happened at breakneck speed.
I was a little in a panic at first, I won't hide it from you.
Even my lawyer - Nathalie Tomasini [specialized in domestic violence] - had never seen this in her entire professional career.
“For my daughter, I was ready for anything!
Too bad if I took insults, threats, if I was the victim of cyberstalking, trolls or hate speech ... "
By testifying in this way, were you aware of the dangers involved, in particular the risks of cyberstalking or of reprisals from your ex-spouse?
I was well aware of the dangers that this could engender, and that everything could turn against me.
But my only goal at the time was just to protect my daughter.
For her, I was ready for anything!
And too bad if I took insults, threats, if I was the victim of cyberstalking, trolls or hate speech.
You know, I could have died a hundred times for my daughter.
Afterwards, I'm not going to lie to you, it was very hard psychologically.
I took great risks speaking with my face uncovered.
I was afraid that my ex-partner would recognize me, and come after me.
But I did not regret for a single second what I did.
A week later, I learned that my ex-husband had been remanded in custody, which I had been asking for months with my lawyer.
Strangely, justice suddenly woke up ...
Are social networks the last resort for women victims of domestic violence to be heard?
This has been the case for several years.
Social networks have allowed victims of domestic violence to finally be visible.
Some say they have enabled a liberation of speech.
But that's not true, women have always spoken, it's just that they weren't heard.
As if we wanted to hide them in cupboards… Thanks to platforms like Twitter, it has become impossible to look away, to make their words invisible.
And fear has now changed sides.
The #MeToo wave has shown society the extent of the phenomenon, and has given hope to many victims.
Even if we are well aware that justice does not go to social networks.
"We often criticize social networks [...] But they are useful because they are a real sounding board for supporting certain causes"
We talk a lot about hate, online violence on social networks.
But ultimately, Twitter is also a great space for victims to speak out ...
Social networks are often criticized, but for women like me, it's a chance.
Twitter saved my life, and my daughter's.
He also helped a lot of other women get out of it.
Without going so far as to tell you that everything is perfect, social networks are useful and still allow us to do beautiful things… The more testimonies published, the more we encourage victims to speak out.
We can still see it very well today with #MeTooInceste, # MeTooGay… Social networks are a real sounding board for supporting certain causes.
Would you advise women who are victims of domestic violence to do the same as you?
Many women have done it, and will still do it, I am unfortunately not a unique case.
If the judicial institutions were functioning properly, we would not need to get there.
For women victims of domestic violence, often alone in sometimes rural areas, it helps to break the isolation, and to be put in touch with associations.
We are now coming to the end of a system that no longer protects victims, it is sad to have come to this in 2021 in a country like France.
You participated in the Grenelle on domestic violence at the end of 2019. Today, have things changed?
You can't say that nothing has changed.
For two or three years, domestic violence has been more visible thanks to the communication and awareness-raising carried out by the public authorities and associations [notably with the establishment of 3919].
The arrival of anti-reconciliation bracelets was also something positive, it is better than judicial control.
But human and financial resources are needed for them to be effective and save lives.
Some laws that have been adopted represent a step forward, but it is still insufficient.
We need a structural reform of justice and a real protection of children.
Judges in family cases are too often overwhelmed; specialized courts are needed, as in Spain.
By the Web
The cry for help from Laura, terrified since the release of her ex-partner who tried to kill her
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Social networks, “last resort” for battered women to make themselves heard?
By the Web
Justice
Testimony
Twitter
Social networks
Feminicide
Domestic violence