Following the release of her book on the violence inflicted by her two ex-companions, Judith Chemla gave a moving testimony.
It is a strong testimony that Judith Chemla delivered on the set of Daily. This Thursday, January 25, the actress came to talk about her book, Our silence left us alone, which testifies to the violence she suffered from two men with whom she was in a relationship. On January 10, on the same set opposite Yann Barthès, actress Judith Godrèche openly mentioned the name of Benoît Jacquot, director with whom she had a relationship at the age of 14.
After the Depardieu affair or the accusations made against the director Philippe Garrel, French cinema is shaken by numerous cases of sexual violence. The actress seen in Camille repeats, Gears Or Versailles returns to those suffered while she was with artists from this field : the actor and director James Thierrée (who denies the facts), then the director Yohan Manca. She chose to speak out because she realized that she was not alone and that it was a social problem.
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The strong testimony of Judith Chemla on violence against women
While her ex-spouse does not respect the conditions of her judgment, Judith Chemla decides to speak publicly about the facts on France Inter in 2022. In her work, she now returns to her state of mind before these two painful love stories. She felt invincible, a powerful and free woman. This is surely what made it difficult to accept his victim status: “No one wants to see themselves as a victim. Society is fed up, it’s boring”. But ultimately she had not measured the seriousness of what she had suffered from her creators who “belittle the talent of actresses”. She talks about her first violent relationship, which could “creates force fields”, another violent man feeling “the injury”.
But it is not so much to talk about herself that Judith Chemla testifies today: “I understood that my story was not just a private story, just an isolated casewhich unfortunately so many women suffer, without even wanting to admit that it is unacceptable”. She states: “There is talk of sending mediators. Domestic violence is not a conflict. These are mechanisms of domination, it’s systemic”. For her, these mechanisms are “hidden even in the corners of our institution”.
She talks about the demand for specialized courts and the need to speak but also to listen: “What slows us down a lot is that everyone defends their clan”, she said, referring to the defense of relatives of the accused. “Denial is a terrible glue that causes so much pain”, she adds. She says she doesn’t blame these men, but she sees mechanisms and it pains her: “You have to own your mistakes”.
But the actress remains positive: “The institutional world is resisting but there is a new fabric in the world. Bonds of love, sorority, fraternity”. Judith Chemla states: “This world belongs to us, it is ours, we are all responsible for making it better, less violent”. She does not forget the children, sometimes in danger placed with their attackers, and hopes that their cases will be quickly re-evaluated. “Because we won’t be silent anymore”, she concludes forcefully.
Editor for Aufeminin since 2022, Charlotte is passionate about cinema, French and international, and a fortune reader. Curious about everything, she talks as much about personalities as…