In this eye-opening video, we delve into the shocking scenes of retaliation against French women collaborators during World War II. From Cherbourg to Rennes, and possibly beyond, we witness the punishment inflicted upon women who were accused of collaborating or consorting with the Germans. We see a group of women with shaved heads sitting in the back of an open truck, surrounded by male onlookers. The women start moving down the street, and a man lifts and drops a pile of hair. Shots of men cutting the hair of two women follow. Close-ups of a sign reading "Le Char des Collaboratrices" give us a sense of the public humiliation these women faced. We also see crowds on the street as women and men, holding their hands in the air, are led from a building. One woman's face is smeared with what appears to be blood, and the police struggle to hold back the angry crowd.
Next, we witness an informal trial and punishment of women accused of collaboration. The women plead their cases before a table set up outside, behind which a few men sit. Some of the accusers wear the armbands of the Free French Forces of the Interior (FFI) resistance movement. The women then have their heads shaved, with some accepting their punishment meekly and others arguing vehemently. We see a long line of the women walking through a crowd and boarding a truck, on which is painted "Les Poules a Boches." A huge crowd surrounds the truck as it moves slowly down the street, with American soldiers capturing the scene in photographs.
This video provides a sobering and thought-provoking look at the consequences of collaboration during World War II, highlighting the complex and painful history of France during this time.
