French Female Activists

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 1 
Brigitte Bardot
(French Actress and Singer Known for Her Films: ‘And God Created Woman’ and ‘Viva Maria!’)
Brigitte Bardot
7
Birthdate: September 28, 1934
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Paris, France

Brigitte Bardot is a French former singer and actress. One of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and 1960s, Bardot remains a major pop culture icon despite quitting the entertainment industry in 1973. Bardot is credited with popularizing the bikini. She also popularized the town of Armação dos Búzios and the city of St. Tropez in Brazil.

 2 
Marion Cotillard
(French Actress Best Known for Her Films: 'La Vie en Rose' and 'Two Days, One Night')
Marion Cotillard
8
Birthdate: September 30, 1975
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Paris, France
Marion Cotillard delivered an Academy Award-winning performance as Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose, becoming the first to win the award for a French-language film. She was appreciated for her iconic role of Joan of Arc on stage. She has promoted Lady Dior bags and Chanel No. 5 fragrance.
 3 
Simone de Beauvoir
(French Existentialist Philosopher, Writer, Social Theorist, and Feminist Activist)
Simone de Beauvoir
4
Birthdate: January 9, 1908
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: April 14, 1986
French author and existentialist philosopher Simone de Beauvoir is best remembered for her feminist treatise The Second Sex and her novels The Mandarins and She Came to Stay. Her literary contributions also include essays, biographies, and her autobiographical works. She won the Prix Goncourt and the Jerusalem Prize.
 4 
Simone Weil
(French Mystic, Social Philosopher and Resistance Activist During World War II)
Simone Weil
3
Birthdate: February 3, 1909
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: August 24, 1943
Paris-born philosopher and activist Simone Weil could speak in Sanskrit and Greek as a student. Called The Martian by her classmates, due to her peculiar nature, she died of cardiac failure at 34, refusing to eat more than the people of German-occupied France, in spite of being diagnosed with tuberculosis. 
 5 
Olympe de Gouges
(French Playwright, Political Activist, and Advocate for Women's Rights)
Olympe de Gouges
3
Birthdate: May 7, 1748
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Montauban, France
Died: November 3, 1793

Olympe de Gouges was an 18th-century French playwright and political activist. Her writings on women's rights and abolitionism were popular in various countries. She was an outspoken advocate against the slave trade in the French colonies. She demanded that French women be given the same rights as French men. She was executed during the Reign of Terror.

 6 
Elif Shafak
(Writer)
Elif Shafak
3
Birthdate: October 25, 1971
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Strasbourg, France

Known widely as Turkey’s most popular female author, Elif Shafak is best known for her Booker-shortlisted bestseller 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World. A fierce advocate for gender equality and LGBTQ rights, she is also a 3-time TEDGlobal speaker. She now lives in London, on a self-imposed exile.

 7 
Marina Picasso
(Humanitarian)
Marina Picasso
2
Birthdate: November 14, 1950
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: France

Marina Picasso is a French humanitarian best known as the granddaughter of popular Spanish painter and sculptor Pablo Picasso. After inheriting a fifth of Pablo Picasso's estate, Marina Picasso used much of the inheritance to support humanitarian programs for children in need. Marina Picasso is credited with establishing a charitable organization called The Marina Picasso Foundation.

 8 
Hélène Cixous
(French Feminist Writer and Philosopher Best Known for Her Article ‘The Laugh of the Medusa’)
Hélène Cixous
3
Birthdate: June 5, 1937
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Oran, Algeria

Hélène Cixous is a professor, poet, playwright, rhetorician, literary critic, philosopher, and French feminist writer. She is best known for writing an article titled The Laugh of the Medusa, which earned her popularity and established her as a thinker in post-structural feminism.

 9 
Delphine Seyrig
(Actress and Film-Director Known for Her Role 'Colette de Montpellier' in Film ‘The Day of the Jackal’)
Delphine Seyrig
3
Birthdate: April 10, 1932
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Died: October 15, 1990

Lebanese-born-French actress and film-director Delphine Seyrig played diverse roles in films and stage works. She garnered international recognition performing in the film Last Year at Marienbad and bolstered her career with other films like The Day of the Jackal and Muriel ou Le temps d'un retour. A prominent feminist-figure in France, Seyrig also directed films like Sois belle et tais-toi.   

 10 
Julia Kristeva
(Bulgarian-French Author and Academic Whose Themes Surrounded on Feminism, Semiotics, and Psychoanalysis)
Julia Kristeva
3
Birthdate: June 24, 1941
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Sliven, Bulgaria

Bulgarian-born French author and literary critic Julia Kristeva is also a professor at the University Paris Diderot. Her writings, such as the Female Genius trilogy, are centered around feminism, semiotics, and psychoanalysis. She has also pioneered semanalysis and has been recognized with honors such as Commander of the Legion of Honor.

 11 
Marlene Schiappa
(Politician)
Marlene Schiappa
2
Birthdate: November 18, 1982
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Paris, France
 12 
Alexandra Cousteau
(Filmmaker)
Alexandra Cousteau
2
Birthdate: March 21, 1976
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Los Angeles County, California, United States
 13 
Louise Michel
(French Anarchist Who Fervently Preached Revolutionary Socialist Themes)
Louise Michel
3
Birthdate: May 29, 1830
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Vroncourt-la-Côte, France
Died: January 9, 1905

A significant figure of the Paris Commune, Louise Michel was born as an illegitimate child of a maid. She had initially been trained to be a teacher but later began developing an interest in revolutionary socialist ideas. She was also once sent behind bars for inciting riots.

 14 
Beate Klarsfeld
(Franco-German Journalist and Nazi Hunter)
Beate Klarsfeld
2
Birthdate: February 13, 1939
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Berlin, Nazi Germany

Beate Klarsfeld is a Franco-German journalist best known for her work as a Nazi hunter. Beate and her husband Serge Klarsfeld achieved popularity for their documentation of many Nazi war criminals, including Alois Brunner, Kurt Lischka, Klaus Barbie, and Kurt Asche. Over the years, Beate Klarsfeld has been honored with numerous prestigious awards, including National Jewish Book Award.

 15 
Madame Roland
(French Revolutionary, Salonnière and Writer)
Madame Roland
2
Birthdate: March 17, 1754
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: November 8, 1793

The wife of Jean-Marie Roland, Madame Roland was a leading French revolutionary and often hosted significant political meets at her salon. She often directed her husband’s political actions and was responsible for creating a rift between the Jacobin and Girondin factions. She was later arrested and guillotined.

 16 
Princess María Teresa of Bourbon-Parma
(Political Activist and a Member of the 'House of Bourbon-Parma')
Princess María Teresa of Bourbon-Parma
3
Birthdate: July 28, 1933
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: March 26, 2020

Her activism and outspokenness had earned Princess María Teresa of Bourbon-Parma the nickname Red Princess. Part of the Spanish royal family, she was educated at the Sorbonne. She later supported the Carlist movement and was a champion of women’s rights, too. She eventually died of COVID-19 at age 86.

 17 
Monique Wittig
(Novelist)
Monique Wittig
2
Birthdate: July 13, 1935
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Dannemarie, France
Died: January 3, 2003
 18 
Line Renaud
(Singer)
Line Renaud
2
Birthdate: July 2, 1928
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Nieppe, France
 19 
Danielle Mitterrand
(François Mitterrand's wife)
Danielle Mitterrand
2
Birthdate: October 29, 1924
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Verdun, Meuse, France
Died: November 22, 2011
 20 
Ouida
(Novelist)
Ouida
2
Birthdate: January 1, 1839
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Bury Saint Edmunds, England
Died: January 25, 1908
 21 
Celine Cousteau
(Public Figure and Socio-Environmental Advocate)
Celine Cousteau
2
Birthdate: June 6, 1972
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Los Angeles County, California, United States

Celine Cousteau is a public figure and socio-environmental advocate. She is renowned for her work as an explorer, documentary filmmaker, artist, public speaker, designer, and brand ambassador. Céline Cousteau is credited with founding CauseCentric Productions, which produces multi-media content.

 22 
Inessa Armand
(Politician)
Inessa Armand
2
Birthdate: May 8, 1874
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: September 24, 1920
 23 
Gisèle Halimi
(Lawyer)
Gisèle Halimi
2
Birthdate: July 27, 1927
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: La Goulette, Tunisia
Died: July 28, 2020
 24 
Annie Belle
(Actress)
Annie Belle
2
Birthdate: December 10, 1956
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Paris, France
 25 
Margaret of Valois-Angouleme
(Author)
Margaret of Valois-Angouleme
2
Birthdate: April 11, 1492
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Angoulême, France
Died: December 21, 1549

Margaret of Valois-Angouleme, the wife of Henry II of Navarre, was a significant figure of the French Renaissance, and is also regarded as The First Modern Woman. She patronized artists and was herself an author, with several short stories and a religious poem to her credit.

 26 
Frederique Bel
(Model)
Frederique Bel
2
Birthdate: March 24, 1975
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Annecy, France
Height: 5'9" (175 cm)
 27 
Zineb El Rhazoui
(Journalist)
Zineb El Rhazoui
2
Birthdate: January 19, 1982
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Casablanca, Morocco

Zineb El Rhazoui is a French journalist best known for her contribution as a columnist for the popular magazine Charlie Hebdo where she worked from 2011 to 2017. Rhazoui was in Morocco on 7 January 2015 when the Charlie Hebdo massacre took place. Since 2015, Rhazoui has been working as a human rights campaigner, speaking about free speech and Islam.

 28 
Marie Souvestre
(Educator)
Marie Souvestre
2
Birthdate: May 28, 1830
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Brest, France
Died: March 30, 1905
 29 
Flora Tristan
(Writer)
Flora Tristan
2
Birthdate: April 7, 1803
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Bordeaux, France
Died: November 14, 1844
 30 
Pauline Harmange
(Feminist writer and a self-declared misandrist)
Pauline Harmange
2
Birthdate: December 6, 1994
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: France
 31 
Rama Yade
(Senegalese-Born French Politician, Feminist, and Author)
Rama Yade
2
Birthdate: December 13, 1976
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Ouakam, Dakar, Senegal

Born in Senegal, French politician and author Rama Yade started her career as a top-level civil servant with the French Senate. The UMP member has led France as its Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Human Rights and for Sports. She has also represented France at the UNESCO.

 32 
Theroigne de Mericourt
(Singer)
Theroigne de Mericourt
2
Birthdate: August 13, 1762
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Marcourt, Rendeux, Belgium
Died: June 9, 1817
 33 
Priscillia Ludosky
(One of the founders of the yellow vest movement)
Priscillia Ludosky
0
Birthdate: November 4, 1985
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Unknown
 34 
Jacline Mouraud
(Politician)
Jacline Mouraud
2
Birthdate: April 24, 1967
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Guérande, France
 35 
Germaine Dulac
(Filmmaker, Critic, Film Theorist, and Journalist)
Germaine Dulac
2
Birthdate: November 17, 1882
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Amiens, Somme, Picardy, France
Died: July 20, 1942

Germaine Dulac was a French filmmaker, critic, film theorist, and journalist. She is remembered for her 1923 impressionist silent film La Souriante Madame Beudet and her 1928 experimental film The Seashell and the Clergyman. Germaine Dulac's contributions to the French film industry were recognized in 1929, when she was presented the Legion of Honor.

 36 
Marie-Claude Vaillant-Couturier
(Politician)
Marie-Claude Vaillant-Couturier
1
Birthdate: November 3, 1912
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: December 11, 1996
 37 
Rokhaya Diallo
(Journalist)
Rokhaya Diallo
1
Birthdate: April 10, 1978
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Paris, France

Rokhaya Diallo is a French journalist, filmmaker, and author. Best known as an activist, Diallo works towards achieving gender, racial, and religious equality. Diallo is widely regarded as one of the most important anti-racism activists in France. In 2013, Rokhaya Diallo was named in the 100 most influential French women list published by Slate.

 38 
Assa Traore
(Activist)
Assa Traore
2
Birthdate: 1985
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Paris, France
 39 
Sœur Emmanuelle
(French Nun Known for Her Involvement in Working for the Plight of the Poor in Turkey and Egypt)
Sœur Emmanuelle
1
Birthdate: November 16, 1908
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Brussels, Belgium
Died: October 20, 2008

Sister Emmanuelle was a human rights worker and Catholic Religious Sister. She is best remembered for her work that aimed at helping the poor in Egypt and Turkey. Emmanuelle, who was born to a French father and a Belgian mother, was granted Egyptian citizenship in 1991 for her work in Egypt. She was also renowned for her unorthodox religious views.

 40 
Suzanne Césaire
(Writer)
Suzanne Césaire
0
Birthdate: August 11, 1915
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Les Trois-Îlets, Martinique
Died: May 16, 1966
 41 
Judy Minx
(Adult film star)
Judy Minx
0
Birthdate: January 4, 1989
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Paris, France
 42 
Françoise Dior
(A Prominent Neo-Nazi Figure and Niece of Fashion Designer Christian Dior)
Françoise Dior
0
Birthdate: April 7, 1932
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Paris, France
Died: January 20, 1993

French socialite Françoise Dior was the niece of world-renowned designer Christian Dior. However, the heiress later became a Nazi sympathizer and married neo-Nazi figure and Holocaust denier Colin Jordan. She was associated with the National Socialist Movement but eventually lost most of her fortune and died in oblivion.

 43 
Nadia El Fani
(Film Producer, Director, and Screenwriter)
Nadia El Fani
1
Birthdate: January 1, 1960
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Paris, France

Nadia El Fani is a French-Tunisian film producer, director, and screenwriter. She is best known for directing documentary films that discuss topics like women's rights, human rights, criticism of religion, and secularism. Nadia El Fani's 2012 film Même pas mal earned her the FESPACO award under the Best Feature Documentary category in 2013.

 44 
Celine Bara
(Actress)
Celine Bara
2
Birthdate: September 9, 1978
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Antony, France
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)