The essentials: the Montpellier-based association les Tricoteuses hystériques filed a complaint in December 2025 against Brigitte Macron for public insult, after the First Lady referred to feminist activists of #NousToutes as “dirty cunts.” For this complaint to be examined by an investigating judge, the collective — which calls itself the “343 insulted” — must pay a deposit of 8,550 euros. Unable to raise this sum, the association denounces this as an attempt at legal intimidation and has launched a crowdfunding campaign to finance the procedure.
Can one afford to defend oneself in court when one does not have the means? This is the question posed by the feminist activists from Montpellier’s Tricoteuses hystériques, confronted with a financial barrier at the heart of a matter that far exceeds their own collective. Their complaint against Brigitte Macron for public insult is at the center of a legal showdown that raises fundamental questions about women’s access to justice and the risk of gag orders.
- The origin of the case: the viral video and the “dirty cunts”
- The complaint for public insult: who are the “343 insulted”?
- The deposit of 8,550 euros: a costly justice?
- What the activists denounce: a gag order
- The crowdfunding and the continuation of the procedure
- A symbol of women’s obstacles in the face of justice
The origin of the case: the viral video and the “dirty cunts”
It all began at the end of 2025, with the dissemination of a video that quickly became viral on social media. In it, Brigitte Macron calls feminist activists from the #NousToutes movement “dirty cunts” while they were demonstrating against a show by comedian Ary Abittan.
The context: Ary Abittan and the dismissal that does not close the debate
Ary Abittan was granted a dismissal in a case of alleged rape. But for the activists of #NousToutes and for the Tricoteuses hystériques, a dismissal does not mean established innocence — it means that the evidence gathered was insufficient to bring the case to trial. Their presence at the venue of the show was aimed at publicly expressing this disagreement and reminding of the voices of the presumed victims.
It is in this tense context that Brigitte Macron, filmed either knowingly or not, uttered those words against the protesters. For the activists, this insult hurled by the First Lady of France, implicitly supporting a man accused of rape, is much more than a verbal slip.
The complaint for public insult: who are the “343 insulted”?
In December 2025, the Montpellier-based association les Tricoteuses hystériques filed a complaint against Brigitte Macron for public insult. The collective of plaintiffs calls itself the “343 insulted” — a direct reference to the famous “Manifesto of the 343” of 1971, signed by women claiming their right to abortion.
The legal qualification retained
For the plaintiffs, Brigitte Macron’s remarks are not merely a private opinion. Filmed and widely disseminated, the sequence constitutes, according to them, “a public insult directed at women engaged against sexual violence”. Public insult, as defined by the 1881 law on press freedom, is an offensive, contemptuous, or invective expression that does not involve the accusation of a specific fact, directed at a person or a group.
For the justice to examine our complaint, we must pay. The greatest of inequalities is played out here.
— Vigdis Morisse Herrera, president of the Tricoteuses hystériques
The deposit of 8,550 euros: a costly justice?
To avoid the automatic classification of a simple complaint as closed, the activists chose to file their complaint with civil party constitution. This procedure allows direct access to an investigating judge and avoids the prosecution from dismissing the case without examination. But it comes at a cost.
How does the deposit work?
When a complaint is filed with civil party constitution, the investigating judge sets a deposit amount — a sum of money that the plaintiffs must pay to cover potential procedural costs. This mechanism is intended to prevent abusive complaints. In the case of the “343 insulted,” this amount has been set at 8,550 euros.
For an activist association like the Tricoteuses hystériques, this sum is out of reach. It represents a concrete and immediate obstacle to accessing the investigating judge — that is, the simple possibility of having their complaint examined.
- Without a paid deposit: the complaint with civil party constitution cannot be examined by the investigating judge
- Fixed amount: 8,550 euros for the entire procedure
- Consequence: without this sum, the case risks being dismissed
What the activists denounce: a gag order
The “343 insulted” do not see this deposit as a simple technical mechanism. They see it as a gag order — that is, a distorted means of preventing individuals with limited resources from exercising their rights.
What is a gag order?
A gag order (or SLAPP — Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) refers to any judicial approach used not to obtain justice but to deter, financially exhaust, or silence those who speak on matters of public interest. In this case, it is not Brigitte Macron who is attacking — but the activists believe that the judicial mechanism produces the same effect: forcing them into silence due to lack of means.
For Vigdis Morisse Herrera, president of the association, the systemic dimension is at the heart of the problem: “All these murders of women that we denounce, there is inaction from the justice that has allowed them to die.” The deposit of 8,550 euros thus becomes, in their view, the symbol of a justice inaccessible to women who denounce violence.
The crowdfunding and the continuation of the procedure
Faced with the impossibility of raising this sum alone, the Tricoteuses hystériques launched an online crowdfunding to finance the deposit and allow the examination of their complaint by the investigating judge. The stated objectives are twofold: to gather the necessary funds and to make the situation public to alert on financial obstacles to justice.
What the crowdfunding reveals
Beyond funding the procedure, the crowdfunding is a militant act. It allows transforming a judicial obstacle into a public forum on women’s access to justice and on the handling of complaints for insult or violence. It also concretely documents the real cost of a judicial procedure for an association without significant resources.
A symbol of women’s obstacles in the face of justice
The case of the “343 insulted” is part of a broader context, documented by official figures from the French government. These data paint a troubling picture of victims’ access to justice.
Figures that are concerning
- Only 7% of victims report having filed a complaint
- More than 7 out of 10 accused are subject to a classification as closed
- Judicial processes described as long, draining, and uncertain
- Financial barriers that add to already considerable psychological and social barriers
For the Tricoteuses hystériques, their case concretely illustrates how access to justice can be conditioned by financial capacity — turning a theoretical right into a practical privilege. It is not just their complaint that is at stake, but the question of whether resource-less activists can have their rights examined on the same terms as any other litigant.
Having to gather several thousand euros just for our complaint to be examined illustrates this risk of judicial intimidation.
— Statement from the “343 insulted”
FAQ
Why did the Tricoteuses hystériques file a complaint against Brigitte Macron?
The Montpellier-based feminist association filed a complaint for public insult after the dissemination of a video in which Brigitte Macron refers to feminist activists as “dirty cunts.” These activists were demonstrating against a show by comedian Ary Abittan, accused of rape and who had benefited from a dismissal.
What is a deposit in court?
The deposit is a sum of money that plaintiffs must pay when filing a complaint with civil party constitution. It is intended to cover potential procedural costs and to prevent abusive complaints. Without this payment, the investigating judge cannot examine the complaint. In this case, the amount has been set at 8,550 euros.
What is a gag order?
A gag order refers to a judicial approach used to deter or silence individuals who speak on public interest topics by financially exhausting them. The activists believe that the high deposit produces this effect, even though it is not a direct attack from the opposing party.
What is public insult?
Public insult is defined by the 1881 law on press freedom. It refers to any offensive or contemptuous expression directed publicly at a person or group, without the accusation of a specific fact.
Who are the “343 insulted”?
This name is a reference to the “Manifesto of the 343,” signed in 1971 by women claiming their right to abortion. The “343 insulted” are the activists and members of the Tricoteuses hystériques who co-signed the complaint against Brigitte Macron for public insult.
Has Brigitte Macron responded to the complaint?
At this stage of the procedure, no public response from Brigitte Macron or her legal representatives has been communicated regarding this specific complaint. The procedure is still at the stage of civil party constitution, conditioned on the payment of the deposit by the plaintiffs.
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