French bookstores targeted by ideological violence
A collective of book professionals denounces in a Le Monde tribune the rising attacks on bookstores, from cyberharassment to physical damage. These assaults, driven by books sold or debated, aim to impose censorship through fear. The authors stress the need to preserve the plurality of ideas in these spaces of knowledge.
In a tribune published on October 7, 2025, in Le Monde, a collective of book trade and publishing professionals warns against the normalization of violence targeting bookstores. These establishments are becoming 'the receptacles of all ideological overflows,' as per the article's title, while they should remain 'refuges for knowledge and creation.'
Reported incidents include broken or acid-tagged windows in Paris, Lille, Rennes, Périgueux, Nantes, Lyon, Rosny-sous-Bois, and Marseille. Booksellers have been insulted or threatened in Paris, Nice, Vincennes, and Ardèche. Additionally, debates or author meetings have been disrupted in Bordeaux, Strasbourg, and Brussels.
These attacks come from groups or individuals claiming extremist ideologies, driven by the mere sale or discussion of certain books. 'Such aggressions cannot but concern us and we must refuse their normalization,' writes the collective. They aim to instill fear and self-censorship, threatening bookstores' role in showcasing societal debates.
The text emphasizes that the plurality of ideas is 'indispensable for reflection, debates, and the necessary understanding of a complex world.' The incriminated works have not been subject to any judicial proceedings and fall under freedom of expression. 'Everyone is free to read them or ignore them, but in no case to try to make them invisible through threats,' state the signatories. Booksellers' freedom to select books echoes freedoms of thought, expression, publication, and reading.