From our special correspondent in Lille,
Two rooms, two atmospheres. In Lille, this Saturday, clashed, by interposed rallies, the PS mayor of the city, Martine Aubry, and the aspirant to the presidency of France, Eric Zemmour. In response to the arrival, in her stronghold, of the Reconquest candidate to hold a large meeting there, the former Minister of Labor had assembled a welcoming committee, with the support of the association SOS Racisme and some elected officials from Lille LFI , EELV and PCF. Because what might be better than a common fight to bring together a left which, on the side of the contenders for the Elysée, still remains so divided?
“Eric Zemmour carries and leads to violence. It carries hatred and plays on fears,” chanted Martine Aubry to a crowd of several hundred activists. “And they are going to tell us, this followingnoon, “we are at home”. Males, white, heterosexual. Well we too will tell them “we are at home”, all different! »
Tear gas and 8,000 supporters
If a few tear gas were launched during the anti-fascist rally scheduled an hour before the meeting, and six people arrested, on the side of the Grand Palace, security level, Éric Zemmour had worked hard. There is no question of letting the violence of the Villepinte meeting reproduce itself. Each crossroads had been scrupulously marked out and secured by police vans.
In front of the room, thousands of people were waiting to be able to enter to come and support THEIR candidate. In total, around 8,000 supporters were present to support the candidate for the Elysée. 2,000 remained on the floor, forced to stay outside.
“You still upset someone”
During his speech, Eric Zemmour did not fail to tackle the mayor of Lille. “By coming in such large numbers, know that you have still upset someone, the polemicist had fun. By coming to Lille, you hurt Martine Aubry! To the cheers of the crowd, Eric Zemmour therefore spoke directly to Martine Aubry: “No, Martine Aubry, the people of Lille do not belong to you”.
The candidate, on the other hand, did not mention Marine Le Pen, at a meeting in Reims, a few hours apart. The latter had however hit hard two days earlier, claiming,
in an interview at Figaro, find at Eric Zemmour “a whole series of chapels which, in the history of the National Front, came and then left filled with sulphurous characters. There are the traditional Catholics, the pagans, and some Nazis.”
