Accused of having made sexist and discriminatory remarks in front of first-year medical students (PACES) at the Faculty of Medicine of Lyon, Professor Gilles Freyer has just been completely cleared following an administrative investigation. .
In a 36-page report from the General Inspectorate of the Administration of National Education and Research (IGAENR), summarizing an investigation of several months, Pr Gilles Freyer, vice-dean of the Faculty of Medicine of Lyon is completely cleared of the accusations relayed by the online newspaper “Médiacités Lyon”.
The oncologist was implicated for certain statements made during his lectures in “health, society, humanity”, remarks noted in May 2019 by the information site “Médiacités” and qualified as “misogynist, homophobic and racist”. Following his arrest by the National Association of Medical Students of France (ANEMF), Frédérique Vidal, Minister of Higher Education, had seized the General Inspectorate of the Administration of National Education and Research (IGAENR) to “shed light” on these facts.
The recordings of Prof. Freyer’s lectures analyzed
In its report, the latter has just cleared Professor Freyer by considering that the remarks made “do not seek to humiliate or ridicule a few students whatsoever” and that they “do not call for referral to justice or legal proceedings. disciplinary”. The inspectors analyzed the recordings of Professor Freyer’s lectures and interviewed several dozen people, students, student representatives, teachers and even the dean of the faculty. They considered that the survey published by “Médiacités” had overinterpreted remarks “which can only be presented as unacceptable when taken out of context”.
“No evidence”
On the accusations of “misogyny”, the report specifies that “Médiacités does not provide convincing evidence” and that “the mission does not perceive in Professor Freyer’s courses any condescension towards women, although he displays a rather traditional but non-reactionary vision of the organization of society and specifically of the relations between men and women”. The inspectors also contest the assertions of “Médiacités” on the fact that Professor Freyer discredits the fight against homophobia and proselytizes against euthanasia.
Lastly, the IGAENR emphasizes that a teacher-researcher, beyond his vocation to transmit knowledge, can also “raise questions” rather than “become the spokesperson for an agreed discourse”. In the end, if the mission recognizes in Professor Freyer “an obvious taste” for provocation which can result in “sometimes untimely strokes of humor”, it specifies that he does not “exceed the limits imposed on him by his status”. .
