Cotillard, Pomme, Adjani, Binoche: artists cut their hair in support of Iranian women

Une cinquantaine d’artistes, chanteuses, actrices affichent leur soutien aux femmes Iraniennes dans une vidéo, en se coupant quelques mèches de cheveux.

It is a gesture that has become a symbol of support for Iranian women, who have been demonstrating for two weeks despite the repression: to cut locks of hair or shave their heads. In a video published Wednesday morning by a collective, around fifty actresses, comedians and singers film themselves, scissors in hand, cutting locks of hair. We recognize familiar faces: Charlotte Gainsbourg, Marion Cotillard, Pomme, Angèle, Juliette Binoche, Isabelle Carré, Yaël Naim, Muriel Robin, Alexandra Lamy, Isabelle Adjani, Juliette Armanet, or even Laure Calamy. The soundtrack is the interpretation in Farsi of the song of Italian partisan revolt Bella Ciao, which has become the anthem of protests.

hrough this video, all bring their solidarity to the Iranian women, two weeks after the death of Mahsa Amini . This 22-year-old young woman died on September 16, after being arrested by the morality police in Tehran. She had left hair sticking out of her veil . Since then, demonstrations have shaken the country, and nearly a hundred demonstrators have died .

“Silence can be the worst form of violence”
Three lawyers are at the initiative of this video: Richard Sédillot, specialized in the defense of human rights (he had already mobilized for the release of the Iranian lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh ), the president of Paris Julie Couturier, and the former president of the Conseil national des barreaux, Christiane Feral Schuhl. The actress Julie Gayet supported them. “Iranian women need to know that they are not alone” , explains Julie Gayet to France Inter. “Silence can be the worst form of violence” .

This video is a way of “showing solidarity” , adds the actress. “It was to send them a signal, to say ‘we’re here’. I hope they have a way of seeing it.”  Lawyer Richard Sédillot hopes that this movement from France “will trigger an extremely strong political reaction” . “Condemnations should no longer be made in half-words, but with more vehemence.”

The video posted on social networks is accompanied by an explicit text: “ It is impossible not to denounce again and again this terrible repression. The dead and dead are already counted by the dozens, including children. only increase the number of prisoners already illegally detained and too often tortured. We have therefore decided to respond to the call that has been made to us by cutting, too, some of these locks.”

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Protests continue in Iran
Since the arrest of Mahsa Amini, Iran has been hit by numerous demonstrations. New clashes took place in the night from Sunday to Monday between the police and students in Tehran, on the site of one of the most prestigious universities in the country .
In France, a minute of silence was observed in the National Assembly on Tuesday in honor of the “incredible courage” of the “women, men and all the youth of Iran” who “express their thirst for freedom” , in the words of the President of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet.

In a column sent to AFP on Tuesday, nearly a thousand personalities of the French seventh art, including stars like Léa Seydoux, Isabelle Huppert and Dany Boon, renowned filmmakers or the boss of the Cannes Film Festival Thierry Frémaux called on Tuesday to “support the women’s revolt in Iran”.

More at Radio France: VIDEO – Cotillard, Pomme, Adjani, Binoche: artists cut their hair in support of Iranian women

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Get to Know Accordionist Vincent Peirani, Winner of France’s Most Prestigious Jazz Prize

Vincent Peirani is an accordionist and composer who, earlier this month, won Album of the Year in the prestigious Victoires du Jazz, an annual awards

Vincent Peirani is an accordionist and composer who, earlier this month, won Album of the Year in the prestigious Victoires du Jazz, an annual awards ceremony in France. On this edition of My Music, we’ll join Peirani on a listening tour of his winning album, Living Being II – Night Walker (ACT Music).

Like the Grammys, the Victoires du Jazz are determined by a large body of voting members in the music industry. Peirani has now won three of these awards in his career, including one in the category of “Instrumental Revelation,” in 2014.

Vincent Peirani receives his Victoire du Jazz Award in Paris
CREDIT QUENTINPROD

As that phrase implies, one thing that makes Peirani unique, and also distinctly French, is the instrument he plays. The accordion has a firm place in the history of French popular culture, specifically with genres like chanson — but the instrument isn’t typically associated with jazz. In modern times, it has often been characterized as gauche.

As we’ll hear in the episode, Peirani amusingly addresses these obstacles, admitting that he didn’t have much say in his musical fate. His accordion-infatuated father demanded he play the instrument, despite Peirani often feeling like the laughingstock of his peers.

Through his focus and his fearlessness, often charging the stage at Parisian jam sessions, Peirani began winning audiences over. He eventually received invitations to play in a hodgepodge of musical settings — with African griot masters, thrash metal rockers, flamenco serenaders, and everything in between.

Peirani’s true passion for rock, classical music, and, of course jazz, are delicately woven together on his Living Being II – Night Walker. He is currently on tour in Europe; see his website for details.

Source: Get to Know Accordionist Vincent Peirani, Winner of France’s Most Prestigious Jazz Prize | WBGO