Brigitte Macron is having to prove her womanhood with photos – it’s dystopian

As if the news weren’t depressing enough, I woke up today to read that Brigitte Macron, the wife of French president, Emmanuel Macron, is preparing to present photographic and ‘scientific’ evidence that she’s a woman. This is part of a defamation case against Candace Owens, a political commentator who keeps insisting Macron is ‘a man’. The rumour began in 2021 when two French YouTubers made the same claim. Macron sued them and won in 2024, only for the ruling to be overturned on appeal in 2025 under the banner of freedom of expression. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t exactly call it ‘freedom’ to maliciously invent lies about someone. But now Owens has taken up the mantle of targeting Brigitte, and the Macrons are going to court again (Picture: Getty Images) It says everything about the state of the world that Brigitte Macron is being forced to prove her womanhood in court. What exactly counts as ‘scientific’ evidence here, anyway? An ultrasound showing a uterus? A chromosome test? A graphic photo of her giving birth? The absurdity speaks for itself. But the bigger issue is the precedent this sets. If women now have to provide medical or photographic evidence to prove their identity, we’ve hit a new rock bottom in this transphobic political nightmare the world has become lately (Picture: Getty Images) What I also find fascinating is how deeply offended people like Macron are about being called ‘a man’. Personally, I’ve been called that more times than I can count, so I empathise. Welcome to the club, Brigitte, I suppose – though it’s not a fun place to be. Maybe this experience will give her and others who are seemingly offended by it some empathy for trans people like me, who deal with this kind of abuse daily. One can hope. I feel sad that Brigitte is having to go to such lengths to prove that she is a cisgender woman, but on the other hand I want to ask why she so vehemently needs to defend herself against such claims? So what if she was trans? Why would that be such a terrible thing? A similar question also needs to be directed at Candace Owens. Why do you care? (Picture: Getty Images) This bizarre obsession really says more about those who make the claims rather than anyone else. Ultimately, this case reveals how much trans identities are weaponised – not just against us, but against all women. Michelle Obama was targeted in the same way, with people calling her ‘Michael’ and dissecting her body as if it were evidence in a trial. Now skull measurements, hip width, shoulder size and jawlines are all fair game for the internet’s self-appointed gender police. It feels like the world has become a grotesque reality TV show, where women must now ‘prove’ they aren’t trans, all while their fellow competitors theorise that their hands are too big to be female, or that they don’t have ‘child-bearing hips’. Who’s next? Is anyone safe? Because the reasons for these claims are becoming more arbitrary by the day (Picture: Getty Images) Even Emmanuel Macron weighed in, saying this was about ‘defending’ his ‘honour’. What does that mean exactly? That it’s dishonourable to be married to a trans woman? That LGBTQ+ people are somehow shameful? The last time I heard someone talk about ‘honour’ like that was in Disney’s Mulan. This whole case just keeps revealing how much disdain there is for trans people in society. Facetiousness aside, I do empathise with Brigitte. Because this is more than just something you can brush off and ignore (Picture: REUTERS) I personally know what it’s like to face constant attempts at humiliation and abuse simply for being a trans person. It is cruel, it chips away at you, and it never really stops. I understand why she’s fighting back – but even if she wins, the damage is done. Anti-trans rhetoric doesn’t care about truth. Because cruelty is the point (Picture: Ugla Stefania Kristjonudottir Jonsdottir) This whole case is as bizarre as it is disturbing, and it underlines how depraved political discourse has become. Anti-trans rhetoric harms all women, because no one can ever live up to patriarchy’s impossible standards of ‘real’ womanhood. So yes, Brigitte Macron might win against Candace Owens – and I hope she does. But the smear has already done its work. The war on women’s identities grinds on, fuelled by spite and dehumanisation. And in that war, nobody is the winner (Picture: Getty Images)