Colette Kreder, feminist activist, co-founder of the Demain la parité movement and the Women and Sciences association, died on October 14 in Puteaux (Hauts-de-Seine), at the age of 88, her family announced. She had contributed to imposing parity in the political world.
Born on March 31, 1934 in Commer (Mayenne), to a blacksmith father and a merchant mother, she chose to become an engineer and graduated from the Ecole Polytechnique Feminine (EPF) in 1957. She was recruited by the Ministry of the Air (defence), where she was in charge of research on electronic components until 1964. She then became a consulting engineer in the company Lignes Télégraphiques et Telephones (LTT) until 1979 and then created her society, the Soredi. In 1980, she took over the management of the EPF, which she completely transformed and raised to the international level, before leading this great school to co-education at the end of her mandate, in 1994.
At the end of the 1980s, Colette Kreder joined the National Council of French Women (CNFF) and campaigned there to bring gender equality into the political sphere. In 1992, she founded the association Action pour la parité, with the deputy and sociologist Françoise Gaspard and the journalist Claude Servan-Schreiber.
First quantified study
The same year, she co-organized with Françoise Gaspard a meeting at the National Assembly, to disseminate the charter adopted in Athens, at the end of the European Women and Power Summit, and which included the requirement of parity in decision-making places. About fifty associations are present. According to American historian Joan Scott, “never since the Liberation” these feminist organizations “had not had the opportunity to meet in this way” et “came together on the theme of parity democracy”.
In 1993, Colette Kreder was at the origin, with Françoise Gaspard and Claude Servan-Schreiber, of the first study on the presence of women in electoral competition. It makes public the low proportion of women candidates in the first round of the legislative elections, on March 21, 1993: 1,015 women, out of a total of 5,169 candidates, or 19.6%. A percentage which is even far from being reached in the so-called government parties.
These statistics make the opening of the television news the same evening and are the subject of articles in the press. This study, as well as the results of the ballot, led to the mobilization of feminist associations, because, with 5.6% of women elected to parliament in 1993, France was then second to last in Europe, just ahead of Greece. The word “parity” entered the public debate and became synonymous, in the press, with equality between men and women in elected assemblies.
In 1994, Colette Kreder co-founded with Françoise Gaspard and Claude Servan-Schreiber the Demain la parité network, which brought together several feminist organizations (the French Association of University Women, Elles aussi, the Civic and Social Women’s Union, the Union female professional, etc.).
An essential component
The following year, it imposed the theme of parity for the first time in a presidential election. On April 7, 1995, she co-organized at the Palais des Congrès in Paris, the day “Presidential: women enter the campaign”, to challenge the main candidates. Some 1,600 representatives of women’s associations and 70 journalists from around the world hear the candidates Jacques Chirac, Edouard Balladur and Lionel Jospin answer questions from activists. These relate in particular to a constitutional revision and the need for laws intended to introduce the obligation of parity on the electoral lists.
After the adoption of the law of June 6, 2000 on equal access of women and men to electoral mandates and elective functions, Colette Kreder continued her action by publishing the sexed statistics of the National Orders of Merit and the Legion of honor. In 2007, when the promotion of July 14 of the Legion of Honor was published, she challenged the President of the Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, by showing the low proportion of women (23.31%) appointed and promoted, while the Head of State had undertaken, during the electoral campaign, to promote parity.
In 2008, the promotion of the Legion of Honor in January finally achieved parity (49.7% women). Since then, parity has been an essential component of every promotion. Over the years, it has also imposed itself in the composition of each government.
In 2000, Colette Kreder also co-created Femmes et sciences, an association which encourages girls to engage in scientific and technical training, promotes the promotion of women engaged in these careers and improves the visibility of women scientists. As part of her actions in favor of gender equality, Colette Kreder was elevated to the rank of Commander in the National Order of Merit in 2007 and Commander of the Legion of Honor in 2009.
Colette Kreder in a few dates
31 mars 1934 Born in Commer (Mayenne)
1957 Graduated from the Ecole Polytechnique Feminine (EPF)
1980 Takes over the management of the EPF
1992 Founds the association Action for parity
2000 Creates the Women and Science Association
2009 Commander of the Legion of Honor
October 14, 2022 Death in Puteaux (Hauts-de-Seine)