Children's Nativity Play Stormed by French Leftist Protesters Shouting 'Fascists!'
A children’s living nativity play in France fell victim to protesters this month when 50 demonstrators stormed the event.
The disruption was reported by the French-language publication La Dépêche du Midi.
In its translation of the French media outlet, Breitbart said that during the Dec. 14 event, the “mob of leftist extremists interrupted the nativity play at around 4 pm at the Place Saint-Georges and yelled, ‘stop the fascists!’ along with ‘we are the anticapitalists!”
As a result, the event was stopped after an hour — two hours before it was scheduled to end.
Archbishop of Toulouse Robert Le Gall criticized the protesters.
“I deplore that the simple reminder of the birth of Jesus and the values it conveys (welcoming the stranger, announcing peace, and a sign of tenderness that we all need) is no longer respected in our country and even arouses acts of verbal and physical violence by those who set themselves up as defenders of freedom,” he said in a statement.
French Leftists Label Children In Nativity Play ‘Fascists’.#Toulouse .
https://t.co/czEIVc64A4 via @BreitbartNews— Rybak???? (@Ryb4k_8) December 18, 2019
The Left hates Christmas and anything pure, like children. In France, an open air nativity scene played by children was interrupted by a deranged group shouting “Stop the fascists”. Resulting in the shutting down of the event.https://t.co/MSHWbLLn53 via @ladepechedumidi
— .?? Mike Spike ❌ ?? (@ZubSpike) December 18, 2019
So very “brave” attacking young children. I wonder if they storm mosques at the calling of prayer.
Far-left activists stormed a nativity play involving children in Toulouse, shouting at the children and telling them they were “fascists”. https://t.co/n3MZBz61nV
— thriftymaven (@thriftymaven) December 18, 2019
Nativity plays and displays on public property have become controversial in France, according to The Connexion.
A group known as the Federation of Free Thought has been battling against public nativity scenes, citing a 1905 law requiring France to separate church and state.
“We are seeing a trend of drastic decline [in nativity scenes],” Christian Eyschen, vice president of the federation, said. “Wherever we have taken action, we have won. Our action … supported by the Conseil d’État, has had a positive effect.”
Some civic leaders have tried to bend to the winds of opposition.
Robert Ménard, mayor of Béziers, said he had “representatives of five religions … to show that this is not a polemic, not a provocation, but a sign of union” when he unveiled his community’s nativity scene.
The Toulouse event had been criticized in advance by lawyer Pierre Juston, who said “the problem [with a living nativity] is that they want to tell ‘the real story of Christmas’ – which is for them, the birth of Jesus Christ.”
But Erwan Demonlins of Vivre Noël Autrement, which organized the event, said it had official approval.
“It is in a public place, but it’s not exactly praying in the street! Our event is not claiming to be any one thing. There are much more serious issues going on at the moment,” he said.
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