French Publisher Caves to Woke Mob

For several weeks, French universities have been doing their utmost to decry the supposed ‘Trumpist’ censorship of American universities. Meanwhile, at home in France, we are witnessing a full-blown witch hunt against researchers accused by the left of colluding with the ‘Trumpist camp,’ and consequently deprived of the opportunity to communicate the results of their research.

What is at stake in this affair is not an essay concocted by some over-excited right-wing activist, but rather in-depth work crowning several years of research. Three academics from the Sorbonne have had their work called into question: historian Pierre Vermeren, a specialist on North Africa; literature professor Emmanuelle Hénin, who teaches comparative literature; and Xavier-Laurent Salvador, a specialist in medieval literature.

The PUF commissioned their book three years ago, requesting a “manifesto against wokism.” For three years, they conducted an in-depth investigation to show how woke ideology was infecting all intellectual disciplines at the university and compromising scientific research. Their investigation covered the entire spectrum of university disciplines, from the humanities to the hard sciences, giving a voice to scientists working in biology, genetics, medicine, and not just the social sciences. The researchers are dismayed. “This work took a long time because we wanted to produce a rigorous scientific work that would meet the standards of PUF,” Pierre Vermeren said in an interview with the weekly magazine Marianne.

The publisher announced the suspension of the publication of their essay to the three co-directors of the work by email—after the left-wing press had taken the lead: the newspapers Libération and L’Obs had already announced with great fanfare the suspension of the book’s publication—even though it was still officially listed in press announcements and included in the catalogue of forthcoming works at PUF.

“The context is highly unfavourable to the publication of the work,” the publisher clumsily justified, claiming that he believed the case had “clearly become political” and that, under these circumstances—how brave!—he preferred to withdraw.

Behind this rout lies a cabal, notably organised by the historian Patrick Boucheron, who sadly became famous in the summer of 2024 as the scriptwriter of the disastrous opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games. Boucheron has spearheaded “Stand up for Science,” a movement in support of ‘oppressed’ American researchers. In a press conference introducing that movement on Friday, March 7th, at the prestigious Collège de France, a centre of Parisian academic life, Boucheron introduced the forthcoming work to journalists, framing it as a prime example of the “Trumpism” currently spreading through the media landscape in France. He claimed the work was rife with “approximation” and “inaccuracies.” By explicitly mentioning the publisher, Presses Universitaires de France, he effectively tarnished its reputation, exposing it to condemnation from the self-righteous press. Faced with this public branding, the publisher chose to withdraw the offending book, citing the need to “save its house,” as it explained to the censored authors.

The historian Pierre Vermeren expressed his alarm to Le Figaro: “It’s a bit strange (indeed it is) that a book that has not been distributed, that no one has read apart from the publisher—who was very happy, by the way, congratulating us and telling us that it was exactly what he wanted—should be censored in advance.” ‘Censorship in advance’ or ‘prior censorship’ refers to the system of press and publication control that existed in 19th-century France during the Empire and the Restoration, where writings were subject to scrutiny before being published. Xavier-Laurent Salvador believes that the cancellation of his book’s programme “only proves that we are right to denounce this climate of terror and censorship.”

Initially, the authors considered turning to a foreign publisher—why not a Dutch one? Under the Ancien Régime, had not Diderot and d’Alembert’s Encyclopédie, the object of royal censorship, found refuge in Amsterdam? But today’s left-wing censors have forgotten the universal rule that a banned work generates tenfold public interest. Vermeren explains that, in the space of twenty-four hours, he received ten proposals from some of the most prestigious publishers in Paris, ready to honour the work of the three researchers. The detour via Holland will therefore not be necessary. With such an introduction, the book is almost certain to become an editorial phenomenon and a success with the French public. Thank you for everything, we didn’t ask for so much!