On Saturday, Butch was forced to interrupt a show in the southeastern town of Grenoble amid heckling and reports that objects had been thrown at the stage.
“I was extremely scared, so much so. And the shock was such that I couldn’t move for days,” Butch said on Thursday. “And now there are new calls to boycott that have been made by the France Unbowed [locally].”
Critics, including former prime minister and presidential hopeful Gabriel Attal, have accused the far left of targeting Butch because she is Jewish. France Unbowed and Mélenchon, who has been gaining ground against centrist candidates in recent polls ahead of next year’s presidential election, have previously faced accusations of antisemitism.
Ahead of Butch’s show in Grenoble, local branches of France Unbowed and pro-Palestinian activists called for a boycott and protest, accusing her of supporting Israel. In a leaflet, they said she had “censored Palestinian voices” by signing a petition backing controversial French draft legislation against antisemitism in 2024. The bill was later dropped.
France Unbowed has been on the defensive over the incident. Mathilde Panot, the leader of its parliamentary group, said Wednesday that the leaflet targeting Butch was “bad.”