The portraits of Abbé Pierre in the Emmaüs centers in Toulouse no longer smell of holiness. The decision to drop them divides clients torn between respect for the Churchman's work and discomfort over allegations of sexual assault.
With happy faces and hands full of items picked up at good prices, Emmaüs customers leave the vast hangar in Labarthe-sur-Lèze (Haute-Garonne), south of Toulouse, the largest in the region, with a light step. As they pass the threshold of this great hall, they almost forget that below their heads stands the portrait of Abbé Pierre, the founder of the Emmaüs movement in France and an iconic figure in the fight against precarity. An image tarnished today by serious allegations of sexual assault against the priest and former resistance fighter, who died in 2007 at the age of 94.
Like all the Emmaüs communities in France, the one in Toulouse (150 companions with the sites of Labarthe-sur-Lèze, Sesquières and Escalquens) which says it was stunned by these revelations, is facing a dilemma: what to do with the portrait of Abbot Pierre? Does it still have a place in these community places where respect and values of inclusion become a cardinal virtue?
“The Shocking Story”
“I leave things aside. They have nothing to do with this here, but it bothers me to see his portrait. I'm not going to change my habits though. It's a shocking story, his name should be removed,” he estimates. this young second-hand dealer from Ariège, a regular of the place.
Clarisse, 55, joins her vehicle in the always-full parking lot. This mother from Cintegabelle (Haute-Garonne), and originally from Chad, is a devotee of Emmaüs. “I do not agree to remove his name or his portrait, his errors and mistakes must not erase all the good that Abbé Pierre did in his life. In France, if you do a thousand things right and one thing wrong, we only remember bad things… I've been coming here for 22 years. The first time, I was pregnant with my daughter and Emmaüs helped me to rebuild, to dress here, and I send part of my purchases to Africa, because there is a huge need there. Clarisse spends between 50 and 200 euros on furniture, clothing or household equipment.
“Everything is far…”
The dissociation of religious work from his private life is also the meaning of the message of this other fifty-year-old mother who comes to do good business. “I bought this designer bag for 10 euros and I can resell it on Vinted for 100 euros!” she said, stepping back from the current controversy. “Some of the things he's accused of go back 40 years, that's a long way! And what does that mean? Who hasn't made mistakes or mistakes in their lives? Should we erase everything from their past?”
Among Labarthe-sur-Lèze's companions a sense of shame and astonishment prevails. “We are talking about someone who embodied the values of commitment and integrity,” continues Anaïs Revollat-Veuillet, director of the Emmaüs site, who above all does not want to avoid these questions within the community and welcomes transparency and work. of the truth committed by the Abbé Pierre Foundation, Emmaüs France and Emmaüs international. Thursday evening, following an extraordinary meeting of the board of directors that brought together volunteers, chaperones, office members and employees, it was decided to take down the portraits of the abbot de Pierre from the three places in Toulouse.
“Emmaüs Toulouse supports people who are victims of sexual and gender-based violence and, out of respect for all these people, the portraits of Abbé Pierre will be removed,” indicates the director of the Labarthe-sur-Lèze site, Anaïs Revollat-Veuillet. . “Leaving these portraits would have been contrary to our values and the in-depth work we want to do with all our members.” However, it is not about “erasing the history and the work of Abbé Pierre, but about being in line with the teachings we defend”, concludes the manager.