From Alterfeminism to Femellisme : The rise of anti-feminist mobilisations against “neofeminism” in France in the last decade (2011-2023)

In France anti-gender movements have bloomed in the last decade, being fueled by the success of the mobilization against Same Sex Mariage (2013), which brought an unexpected alliance of conservative movements to the streets, and by the success of the mobilization against an educational programme against gender stereotypes (ABCD de l’égalité, 2014). These movements have provided the training grounds and back up organization for a new generation of nationalists and conservative actors, who have appropriated new forms of streets actions that appeal to the media to relay their message to a larger audience and to shift the public discourse on their key thematics. The mobilization of FEMEN in France (feminist group acting in the streets by showing messages on their naked breast) also boosted a specific anti-feminist mobilization in these movements. Boosted as well by #MeToo and online mobilization during the covid lockdowns, a new wave of anti-feminist actors has sprung, from the masculinists to the “alterfeminists”, from the “femellistes” to the “Integral Feminists”, small groups and individuals have managed to create a strong alternative discourse to feminism that often presents itself as defencer of women rights against the excess of “neofeminism”. This paper will introduce the several alternatives presented to feminism by these movements and the targeted actions they have developed to infiltrate feminist groups and mobilisations.