"If I have to, I'll attach myself to the grid." In a long video published on his Facebook account, the mayor of Poses (Eure) Georgio Loiseau announced that he was starting a hunger strike from Monday, May 29. "From Monday, I am going on hunger strike and I will go to the administrative city, the prefecture and the departmental council," he announced.
It is the situation of the son of the chosen one that pushes him to take action. Her son, who has autism, will soon be deprived of schooling. "I created a school in Poses, a UEEA (Teaching Unit in Elementary Autism), because the school of the Republic no longer wanted to welcome it. And I find myself facing the end of my son's journey, for whom I put all my energy four or five years ago. I have my back to the wall," says Georgio Loiseau.
"Disability, nobody cares"
Before broadcasting his rant and announcing his hunger strike, the mayor says he sought solutions directly from schools. In vain. "We're walking on our heads. I knocked on the door of schools, there is no place, the national education refuses to keep my son, "he says.
Beyond the situation of his son, the elected official denounces the conditions of people with disabilities in France and the few measures taken to promote their integration. "Disability, nobody cares, it must be said. Family caregivers, which we are, are completely ignored," says Georgio Loiseau.
"White-collar workers who don't know what they're talking about"
His commitment is not new. In February 2022, just a few weeks before the first round of the presidential election in France, the mayor of Poses gave his sponsorship to philosopher Josef Schovanec, who has Asperger's autism. The reason? "No candidate is tackling the subject of disability head-on."
Georgio Loiseau assumes it: his hunger strike is also intended to "create a buzz". "Only this mode of communication works (...) Disability, nobody cares, it must be said. Family caregivers, which we are, are completely ignored," he says. He also regrets that "disability policy is managed by white-collar workers who do not know what they are talking about".
Faced with this "institutional abuse", he begins his hunger strike on Monday. "From Monday, I will be there and if necessary, I will attach myself to the grid."