Emmaüs distances itself from its founder by removing his name from the logo

A symbolic distancing: the Emmaüs movement decided this Tuesday, January 21, 2025 to remove from its logo the mention of its founder Abbé Pierre, who died in 2007 and is now targeted by 33 accusations of sexual violence.

During an extraordinary general assembly, the participants, who represented some 300 structures of the movement, voted 91% in favor of removing the words “founder Abbé Pierre” from the Emmaüs logo. She appeared until now in small print, after the name of the association, under a symbol, a blue square decorated with a sun.

“It’s a clear result,” commented to l’AFP Bruno Morel, president of Emmaüs France.

Without denying what we owe to Abbé Pierre, we must continue to work in the service of vulnerable populations.

“Impossible to publicly honor his image”

The board of directors of Emmaüs France proposed in September to remove the mention of its founder from its logo, following a burst of revelations of accusations of sexual violence against him, the second since July.

This measure is “in line with the approach of recognition and respect towards the victims”, specifies a press release from Emmaüs.

Abbé Pierre will “always be part of our history” but “it is becoming impossible to publicly honor his image”, notes the association.

Place of memory dedicated to Abbot Pierre closed

Emmaüs France has permanently closed the place of memory dedicated to the priest, in Esteville (Seine-Maritime). It also recommended that its member structures remove all visuals of the priest.

“Many have already been withdrawn but certain groups still need to work on the subject, it is complicated for certain former companions,” admitted Bruno Morel.
He hopes to be able to “turn a very painful page, obviously for the victims, but also for the movement”.

“Predator”

In total, Abbé Pierre is targeted by 33 accusations of sexual violence. They were revealed in three different reports produced by the Egaé firm, commissioned by the Emmaüs movement and the Abbé Pierre Foundation to shed light on the priest’s actions.

The first, published in July, reported testimonies of sexual harassment and assault. It caused a shock wave as Abbé Pierre, tireless defender of the poorly housed and the most deprived, has long been an icon.

The latest report was made public last week. Among the new revelations, a member of Father Pierre’s family claims to have suffered “sexual contact on her breasts and mouth at the end of the 90s” from him. Another testimony mentions a “penetrative sexual act on a minor boy”. This latest report led Emmaüs to describe its founder as a “predator”.

Legal action

In the wake of these revelations, the French Catholic Church took a strong symbolic measure by asking the courts to open an investigation. Such legal action, however, risks encountering obstacles, given the age of the facts dating back to a period ranging from the 1950s to the 2000s.

Source AFP

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