Hors la loi

Overview

In 1972, 16-year-old Marie-Claire Chevalier was raped and became pregnant. Helped by her mother to have a clandestine abortion, she was finally denounced and arrested. Both faced imprisonment. Gisèle Halimi, their lawyer, transformed their trial into a historic battle. By denouncing an unjust law, they mobilized public opinion and paved the way for the Veil law, legalizing abortion in France. This forgotten struggle resurfaced almost half a century later, in 2019, when schoolchildren proposed that Marie-Claire be made a Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur, transforming what had long been her shame into a source of pride and a symbol for future generations.