(Film still)Life & Culture / NewsLife & Culture / NewsPooh la la! Why are Parisians shitting in the Seine?#JeChieDansLaSeineLe23Juin – which translates as ‘I shit in the Seine on June 23’ – is trending on social mediaShareLink copied ✔️June 17, 2024June 17, 2024Text Serena Smith The French are famed for their penchant for protesting, and now it seems as though they’re taking their tactics to the next level. No, they aren’t wheeling out la guillotine again, but they are reportedly planning to shit in the Seine. That’s right: Parisians are reportedly organising a ‘shit flashmob’ on 23 June, in response to President Emmanuel Macron’s $1.4 billion state-backed plan to clean up the Seine ahead of the Olympics. The #JeChieDansLaSeineLe23Juin hashtag, which translates to “I poop in the Seine on June 23”, has been gathering momentum on social media as backlash to the expensive project has grown. The campaign’s official slogan is: “Because after putting us in shit it’s up to them to bathe in our shit.” A number of protestors have allegedly already shat in the river. The French are angry about the fact that so much money has been poured into the scheme to clean the river while other social issues have gone neglected. Notably, many are still angry at Macron for his proposal to raise the pension age from 62 to 64, a decision which sparked widespread protests in France last year. Officials are intending to allow athletes to swim the Seine for the Olympics, with triathlon and open-water swimming events planned to take place in the river. According to The Guardian, the plan to clean up the Seine has entailed several years of work on wastewater management, treatment plants, filtering stations and storm basins to lower the river’s bacterial contamination from faecal waste. French President Emmanuel Macron and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo have both promised to prove the water is safe by swimming in the Seine before the Games this summer. However, even without the dirty protest, there are still concerns that the river is not clean enough for swimming. Recent testing of samples of water from the Seine found that the water still contains E.coli. Will more protestors follow through and shit in the Seine en masse on the 23rd? Only time will tell. Escape the algorithm! Get The DropEmail address SIGN UP Get must-see stories direct to your inbox every weekday. Privacy policy Thank you. You have been subscribed Privacy policy Expand your creative community and connect with 15,000 creatives from around the world.TrendingWalter Pfeiffer, the cult photographer of beauty, sex and outsidersAs a major retrospective of his work opens in Turin, the Swiss image-maker reflects on magazines, finding success as an ‘outsider’, and why he’s still working at 80Art & PhotographyFashionNipples, nachos and mask4mask: The biggest trends at the Met Gala 2026 Art & PhotographyThings To Come: Porn saves the world in Maja Malou Lyse’s ‘bimbo sci-fi’BeautyNude awakening: Meet the young people embracing naturismBeautyHoroscopes May 2026: It’s a money month, so expect a surprise windfallFashionMet Gala 2026: The best dressed stars from the biggest night in fashionBeauty10 of the hottest Instagram accounts fusing art, sex and eroticaFashion7 major political moments from the 2026 Met GalaLife & Culture‘She was secretly the landlord’: Readers on their housemate horror storiesEscape the algorithm! Get The DropEmail address SIGN UP Get must-see stories direct to your inbox every weekday. Privacy policy Thank you. You have been subscribed Privacy policy