The ''lois scélérates'' ("villainous laws") – a pejorative name – were a set of three

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

laws passed from 1893 to 1894 under the Third Republic (1870–1940) that restricted the 1881

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic News media, media, especially publication, published materials, should be conside ...

laws, after several

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...

s and

assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...

attempts carried out by

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

proponents of " propaganda of the deed".

Overview

The first law was passed on December 11, 1893, two days after Auguste Vaillant's bombing of the National Assembly on December 9, 1893 (slight injuries to twenty deputies).The Anarchist Encyclopedia – Auguste Vaillant entry
It condemned

advocacy Advocacy is an Action (philosophy), activity by an individual or advocacy group, group that aims to influence decision making, decisions within political, economic, and social institutions. Advocacy includes activities and publications to infl ...

of any crime as being itself a crime, which permitted the state to repress most of the anarchist press. The second law was passed on December 18, 1893, and condemned any person directly or indirectly involved in a ''propaganda of the deed'' act, even if no killing was effectively carried out. The last law was passed on July 28, 1894, and condemned any person or newspaper using anarchist

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

(and, by extension, libertarian socialists who were current or former members of the International Workingmen's Association (IWA)): Thus, free speech and encouraging ''propaganda of the deed'' or antimilitarism were severely restricted. Some people were condemned to prison for rejoicing at the 1894 assassination of French president Sadi Carnot by the Italian anarchist Sante Geronimo Caserio. The term has since entered popular language to designate any harsh or unjust laws, in particular anti-terrorism legislation which often broadly represses whole

social movement A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a social or political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to resist or undo one. It is a type of group action and may ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lois scelerates 1893 in law Emergency laws in France French Third Republic Law of France History of anarchism Terrorism laws

Overview

See also

References