Last year, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron decided to sue several people who have made extremely false claims about them. Specifically, these were people who had monetized their hate and transphobia online, and these people were promoting a lie that Brigitte Macron is transgender. While Brigitte Macron is a problematic person, she never deserved to be harassed in this way, or to be targeted with these lies across national and international media. So she sued some of the worst offenders, including Candace Owens and several French online personalities. Brigitte really went there, and she produced evidence that she was born female and she’s always been a cisgender woman. Obviously, she’s already winning her cases.

Ten people who falsely claimed that Brigitte Macron, France’s first lady, was born male were found guilty on Monday of online harassment. The eight men and two women — three of whom were tried in absentia — were given a range of sentences. One received a six-month jail sentence. Other punishments stretched from mandatory online harassment awareness training to an eight-month suspended jail sentence.

The court also fined each 600 euros and ordered them to contribute to a total of 10,000 euros — about $12,000 — in compensation to Ms. Macron. Five of those convicted were also barred from using the social media platform involved in the case, X, for six months.

They were tried after posting messages and photos on social media that wrongly suggested that Ms. Macron — the wife of President Emmanuel Macron of France — was born a boy called Jean-Michel Trogneux, the name of her older brother. The seven defendants tried in person denied wrongdoing, variously saying their posts were either meant in jest or constituted legitimate debate. Only one apologized.

The case was seen as a symptom of a toxic online culture in which growing numbers of internet users, driven by resentment of mainstream leaders and distrust in mainstream news media, are increasingly drawn to conspiracy theories and false information. Mr. Macron has cited the case to amplify a broader campaign against misinformation, which includes a contentious proposal to issue certifications that differentiate professional news networks from other websites.

The Macrons are separately suing Candace Owens for slander in the United States, in the second of five lawsuits that the couple or their relatives have filed against people who have spread rumors about their family.

[From The NY Times]

The NYT reports that most defendants argued the equivalent of free speech, and free debate of public/political figures. I don’t think that argument went very far, especially since the defendants were some of the worst offenders, really pushing the false conspiracies about Brigitte’s gender and bringing her private family members into their delusional utterances. I do believe that this kind of thing constitutes online harassment and defamation. I can’t wait for the Macrons to take down Candace Owens too.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.