Femen activists disrupt Joan of Arc ceremony in Carcassonne

Sunday 10 May 2026 - 15:30

A commemorative ceremony honoring Joan of Arc in Carcassonne was disrupted on Sunday by activists from the feminist group Femen, according to local reports and video footage shared online.

The event, organized by the newly elected mayor Christophe Barthès of the National Rally (RN), marked the national celebration of Joan of Arc and patriotism. It also included the recent relocation of a statue of Joan of Arc to the forecourt of Saint-Michel Cathedral, a move presented as part of a campaign promise to highlight national heritage.

During the mayor’s speech, four Femen activists interrupted the ceremony. They appeared topless with slogans painted on their bodies reading messages such as “Femen not RN” and “Feminist not fascist.” The women were quickly detained by security forces, as shown in videos circulating on social media.

The Femen group later stated that their action aimed to protest what they described as the political appropriation of Joan of Arc by far-right movements. One activist quoted by local media argued that Joan of Arc represented courage and resistance, but not exclusion or hostility toward vulnerable people, contrasting this interpretation with the political messaging of the event organizers.

The municipality had previously described the ceremony as a tribute to a “figure of courage, faith, and national unity,” emphasizing the symbolic importance of restoring the statue to a central public space.

The mayor of Carcassonne has recently drawn controversy for several policy decisions since taking office, including measures targeting public begging and cuts to certain human rights funding, sparking debate among local political groups.