Marion Maréchal, a Member of the European Parliament and niece of Marine Le Pen, has harshly criticized the Paris Olympics opening ceremony, labeling it as disrespectful to Christian values. Maréchal, who viewed the ceremony with her children, described it as filled with “crude woke propaganda.”
She pointed out specific moments she found particularly offensive, such as the portrayal of Marie-Antoinette, the inclusion of drag queens, and the Republican Guard’s dance performance to Aya Nakamura’s music. According to Maréchal, these elements detracted from what should have been a celebration of France’s cultural and sporting heritage.
On social media, Maréchal reached out to Christians around the world who might have felt insulted by the ceremony. She clarified that the offensive content was the work of a “left-wing minority” and did not represent the French nation as a whole.
Maréchal has a history of outspoken positions on political and cultural issues. After her aunt’s defeat in the 2017 presidential election, she took a break from French politics but stayed active by founding the Institute of Social, Economic, and Political Sciences (ISSEP) in Lyon. She has consistently voiced concerns about the impact of mass migration on France, a theme she highlighted during her 2018 appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in the United States.
In 2022, Maréchal joined Éric Zemmour’s Reconquête Party, which led to a further split from her aunt’s National Rally. However, she was expelled from the party earlier this year after advocating for her supporters to back the National Rally in snap legislative elections. Now, as an independent in the European Parliament, Maréchal is aligned with the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Maréchal’s future political moves remain uncertain, but her recent condemnation of the Paris Olympics ceremony underscores her commitment to defending traditional French and Christian values against what she sees as left-wing provocations.
