French Interior Minister, Bruno Retailleau, expressed his support for the far-right movement Nemesis, known for its racist and Islamophobic positions, during a security conference on January 21.

Addressing Alice Cordier, spokesperson for the group, Retailleau stated: “Bravo for your fight, I’m very close to it.” This statement, filmed and widely shared on social media, was welcomed by Nemesis, which claims to be feminist while conveying a hate speech against Muslims and immigrants.

The Nemesis collective, often at the forefront of claiming a supposed “protection of French women,” primarily targets men of foreign origin, particularly Muslims. This group, which calls itself feminist, uses the issue of women’s safety to mask an openly racist and Islamophobic discourse.

Bruno Retailleau’s support for a group that mixes feminism and racial hatred raises concerns about the evolution of political discourse in France and the implications for the fight against Islamophobia and discrimination.