Lawsuit Filed Over Influencer's Claim That "Brigitte Is a Man"
Legal Battle Expected to Be Prolonged
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte are set to submit chemical evidence to a U.S. court to prove that Brigitte is a woman.
According to Yonhap News on September 20, citing a September 18 (local time) report by the BBC, attorney Tom Clare, the legal representative for the Macrons, stated that the couple will present relevant evidence in their defamation lawsuit against U.S. right-wing influencer Candace Owens.
Attorney Clare added that photographs of Brigitte Macron during pregnancy, as well as materials documenting her child-rearing, may also be submitted as evidence.
The controversy arose after Owens spread the rumors via YouTube and Instagram. Owens claimed that Brigitte Macron was originally male and even alleged a blood relationship with President Macron. She further fueled the controversy by mentioning a conspiracy theory that President Macron was the result of a secret experiment by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
This issue has already led to legal disputes in France. Previously, two French women were prosecuted for defamation after spreading claims via YouTube videos that Brigitte Macron was actually her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux, and was living as a woman after undergoing gender reassignment surgery.
The court of first instance found them guilty and ordered them to pay damages, but in July, the Paris Court of Appeals acquitted them, stating that the defendants had made an honest mistake. At that time, the court did not rule on the truth or falsehood of the rumors themselves.
The outcome of the appeal was a significant shock to Brigitte Macron, the person directly affected, and her legal team announced plans to appeal to the Supreme Court. However, the rumors have spread beyond France through American far-right groups and conspiracy theorists, and with Owens reigniting the issue, it has recently become an international controversy.
The Macrons have expressed their intention to respond actively in this lawsuit to restore their honor. However, with the French court's acquittal and ongoing debates about freedom of expression in the United States, there are expectations that the legal battle may become prolonged.
In the past, former U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern have also been targets of rumors regarding their gender or sexual orientation.
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