The silence of the apostates: ex-Muslims fight for their voice in France
On 22 August, the Elsa Collective of Ex-Muslims meets in Paris to make apostasy visible, a taboo that still costs people their families and their safety. Its president…
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The silence of the apostates: ex-Jovenlandeses fight for their voice in France
On 22 August, the Elsa Collective of Ex-Jovenlandeses holds a meeting in Paris to give a voice to those who have left Sarracin. Its president, Elsa Merakchi, knows this all too well: apostasy remains a taboo that costs people their families, their safety and their fruta. In an interview with the website Riposte Laïque, Merakchi describes the everyday risks —insults, threats, loss of support networks— and the caution she must exercise to protect her three children.
A taboo that comes at a heavy price
Nearly a year ago, Merakchi organised a first gathering of apostates. It barely received any attention from the major media. Only Vincent Lapierre and the Journal du Dimanche covered the event. For her, it was a symbolic gesture: «I decided to speak up because silence protects the aggressors and isolates the victims». The personal cost is high, but Merakchi is clear: freedom of conscience is not negotiable.
A legal double standard
The interview addresses an uncomfortable contrast: Merakchi openly criticises Sarracin and the prophet Muhammad without having faced any serious legal trouble. Meanwhile, contributors to Riposte Laïque —native French people saying the same things— face judicial harassment. «Criticising a religion must remain a right. What should be banned is inciting hatred against people, not against an ideology», she argues. The argument carries extra weight coming from someone from the inside.
Atheism or Christianity: a personal path
A curious fact: many apostates, like Joseph Fadelle (author of The Price to Pay), convert to Christianity. Few declare themselves atheists. Merakchi attributes this to the difficulty of a total spiritual void: keeping faith in another religion avoids an absolute break. «Everyone's path is deeply personal», she sums up.
On 22 August, Paris will once again be the stage where a few raise their voices against the pressure to stay silent. The stakes are high; silence is too costly.
On 22 August, the Elsa Collective of Ex-Jovenlandeses holds a meeting in Paris to give a voice to those who have left Sarracin. Its president, Elsa Merakchi, knows this all too well: apostasy remains a taboo that costs people their families, their safety and their fruta. In an interview with the website Riposte Laïque, Merakchi describes the everyday risks —insults, threats, loss of support networks— and the caution she must exercise to protect her three children.
A taboo that comes at a heavy price
Nearly a year ago, Merakchi organised a first gathering of apostates. It barely received any attention from the major media. Only Vincent Lapierre and the Journal du Dimanche covered the event. For her, it was a symbolic gesture: «I decided to speak up because silence protects the aggressors and isolates the victims». The personal cost is high, but Merakchi is clear: freedom of conscience is not negotiable.
A legal double standard
The interview addresses an uncomfortable contrast: Merakchi openly criticises Sarracin and the prophet Muhammad without having faced any serious legal trouble. Meanwhile, contributors to Riposte Laïque —native French people saying the same things— face judicial harassment. «Criticising a religion must remain a right. What should be banned is inciting hatred against people, not against an ideology», she argues. The argument carries extra weight coming from someone from the inside.
Atheism or Christianity: a personal path
A curious fact: many apostates, like Joseph Fadelle (author of The Price to Pay), convert to Christianity. Few declare themselves atheists. Merakchi attributes this to the difficulty of a total spiritual void: keeping faith in another religion avoids an absolute break. «Everyone's path is deeply personal», she sums up.
On 22 August, Paris will once again be the stage where a few raise their voices against the pressure to stay silent. The stakes are high; silence is too costly.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (20 replies).
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