This Saturday, June 15, 2024, as in several cities in France, the unions launched a call to demonstrate in Laval (Mayenne) against the extreme right, at 5 p.m., Place des Droits-de-l’Homme. A mobilization in reaction to the results of the European elections which saw, on Sunday June 9, the National Rally finish well in the lead, including in Mayenne.
In Le Mans (Sarthe), on June 10, a demonstration against the far right brought together 1,000 people. In Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine), 15,000 demonstrators are expected this Saturday, June 15. In Angers, 2,000 people demonstrated during the morning.
In Laval, what will be the scale of the mobilization this Saturday, June 15, especially with the weather forecast to be unpredictable? What about previous mobilizations, also in opposition to the far right?
Also read. Several ongoing demonstrations against the far right: follow our live stream
Several events
Taking a look in the rearview mirror, no mobilization against the extreme right equals, in terms of number of demonstrators, that of the 1er May 2002. That year, during the presidential election, Jean-Marie Le Pen, the National Front candidate, created a surprise by overtaking the socialist Lionel Jospin and reaching the second round, facing the outgoing president, Jacques Chirac. An earthquake.
From the evening of the first round, April 21, 2002, spontaneous demonstrations were organized in Laval to protest against the extreme right.
During the two weeks between the two rounds, every evening at 6 p.m., rallies took place at Place du Jet-d’eau. On Wednesday April 24, 500 high school students took part in an “anti-FN demonstration” and the next day, Thursday April 25, more than 3,500 high school students took to the streets of Laval.
800 demonstrators in 2017
1er-May, Labor Day, 6,000 people gather in downtown Laval. “No Le Pen”, “With Le Pen, the future is painful” are some of the slogans which appear on signs brandished by the demonstrators. The parade takes place peacefully. That day, 1.5 million French men and women marched, including 500,000 in Paris.
Ultimately, the outgoing President will be largely re-elected, benefiting in particular from a “republican front”. In Mayenne, Jacques Chirac obtained an overwhelming majority with 90.22% of the votes.
In 2017, during the presidential election, the National Front once again reached the second round. Marine Le Pen faces Emmanuel Macron. As in 2002, the result caused an outcry followed by mobilization to protest against the presence of the far right.
On May 17, between the two towers, 800 people gathered in Laval, responding in particular to the call of several local artists. “When we launched our call for a rally, I never thought so many people would come,” launches an organizer. “The FN’s discourse has become trivialized,” however, note several participants. The goal is to encourage voting against Jean-Marie Le Pen’s daughter in the second round, but also to reduce the temptation to vote blankly, in opposition to Emmanuel Macron.
Read also: In Mayenne, the vote for the National Rally, “it’s the hope of despair”
The number of demonstrators that day, however, seems insignificant compared to the 6,000 demonstrators on 1er May 2002, despite the advent of social networks which make it possible to quickly relay the announcement of this mobilization.
Note that if the “anti-FN” mobilization of 1er May 2002 was exceptional in its scale, the figures would be pulverized a few years later when, on January 11, 2015, 12,000 people who marched in Laval after the shock caused by the attacks against Charlie Hebdo.
Had we ever seen such a crowd gathered in Laval? Perhaps August 21, 1944, during General de Gaulle’s official visit to the liberated city.
That day, a huge crowd, but the exact number is unknown, gathered to welcome the man who embodies free France, in search of legitimacy.
