A French music festival has received criticism for including a musician on the lineup who had previously been convicted of murder.
As The Guardian reports, Papillons de Nuit, an annual French music festival, has listed Bertrand Cantat on the lineup for its 2018 event, which is scheduled to kick off on May 18th.
However, this decision has been met with criticism by many, including one fan who began a Change.org petition to ban Cantat from performing at the festival. At the time of writing, the petition has 68,986 signatures, just short of its 75,000 goal.
“On Friday May 18th, 2018, you invite Bertrand Cantat to come and play at your Papillons de Nuit festival. Your invitation has consequences,” the petition begins. “By highlighting Bertrand Cantat, you trivialize the violence against women and you endorse them.”
“It is unimaginable to present a murderer under the romantic image of the poet.”
“Violence against women cannot be eradicated from our society as long as festivals like yours — but also film festivals, TV shows, or any other major events — will reward and invite murderers, rapists and criminals to be presented to the public as idols.”
Rising to fame in the ’90s as frontman for French rock band Noir Désir, Bertrand Cantat was convicted in 2004 of the manslaughter of his girlfriend, actress Marie Trintignant, in Lithuania the year before. Following a drunken altercation, prosecutors alleged that Cantat beat Trintignant to the point where she fell unconscious, hitting her head on a nearby radiator, and slipping into a coma from which she would never recover.
After being convicted of “murder, committed with indirect intent” in 2004, Cantat began an eight-year prison sentence, of which he served half before being paroled in 2007. Despite attempts to continue recording with Noir Désir, the band folded in 2010, and Cantat has since embarked upon a solo career.
Despite calls from fans for Bertrand Cantat to be removed from the lineup, organisers have rejected such a possibility, noting that “We consider that our only criteria should be artistic.”
Bertrand Cantat is yet to respond to calls for his removal, but as the petition against him continues to gain traction, there’s no saying how this whole mess will be resolved.
Check out Bertrand Cantat performing with Noir Désir:
