Mobilization against the imminent closure of the Lilas maternity hospital, a pioneer of feminism

For them, it's a piece of feminist history that's about to close its doors. Hundreds of people mobilized on Thursday, October 30th in Les Lilas, Seine-Saint-Denis, to protest against the imminent closure of the maternity ward, one of the first in France to practice "painless childbirth" methods from the USSR.

"The goal of the Lilas maternity hospital was for a woman to be stronger when she left than when she went in," summarized Chantal Birman, 75, a retired midwife from the establishment, as she opened an evening meeting in a gymnasium in the city.

Founded in 1964 by a wealthy countess, Colette de Charnière, the clinic also became a haven for women and doctors campaigning for the liberalization of contraception and abortion, which was practiced clandestinely within its walls before the Veil Law of 1975. Having been on borrowed time for financial reasons for years, this private non-profit establishment will definitively close its doors on Friday evening.

Gathered in front of its facade, the protesters first listened to dozens of team members in purple blouses, crowded on the outside stairs, singing: "We have come to tell you that we are leaving and our tears will not change anything." In the street, four Femen feminists displayed messages on their bare chests, including "Hypocritical policies, historical clinic."

The small facility, located one kilometer east of a gate in Paris, has four birthing rooms and a voluntary termination of pregnancy center. For Suewellyne, 39, breastfeeding her 5-month-old baby born in Les Lilas, "there aren't enough places like this, where the human element comes first. Yes, the premises were outdated, but the midwives more than made up for it on a human level, because they truly listened and consulted with each other."

"The more you help women to live well through what they have to go through – before, during and after childbirth – the fewer young mothers you will have who will suffer deep depression afterwards, which can lead to suicide, the leading cause of death for women in the year following childbirth," Chantal Birman also insisted.

The clinic has been fighting for its survival since 2012. "A plot of land had been reserved for rebuilding the facility elsewhere ten years ago," but "the State has not kept its promises," lamented Lionel Benharous (Socialist Party), the mayor of Les Lilas. This time, the closure is final, "the maternity ward having first lost its certification from the French National Authority for Health" and the operator no longer being able "to ensure the financial sustainability of the activity," according to the regional health agency. Health Minister Stéphanie Rist stated on Franceinfo on Thursday that a women's health center would replace the maternity ward, offering "care before and after childbirth," but not during labor itself.