{{short description|French politician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}} {{infobox officeholder | name = Laetitia Avia | image = Laetitia avia AN 16441.JPG | office = Member of the [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]]<br>for [[Paris]]'s [[Paris's 8th constituency|8th]] constituency | term_start = 21 June 2017 | term_end = 21 June 2022 | predecessor = [[Sandrine Mazetier]] | successor = [[Éva Sas]] | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1985|10|29|df=yes}} | birth_place = [[Livry-Gargan]], France | party = [[La République En Marche!]] | alma_mater = [[Sciences Po]] | profession = [[Lawyer]] }} '''Laetitia Avia''' (born 29 October 1985) is a French lawyer and politician of [[La République En Marche!]] (LREM) who served as the member of the [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]] for the [[Paris's 8th constituency|8th constituency]] of [[Paris]] from 2017<ref name="Bio">{{Cite web|url=http://elections.interieur.gouv.fr/legislatives-2017/075/07508.html |title=Elections législatives 2017 |access-date=19 June 2017 |work=Ministry of the Interior |language=French}}</ref> to 2022,<ref>Giorgio Leali, Peter O'Brien and Louise Guillot (23 June 2022), [https://www.politico.eu/article/emmanuel-macron-clement-beaune-franck-riester-parliament-majority-france-macronia/ Who’s in and who’s out in Macronia — and what it means for the EU] ''[[Politico Europe]]''.</ref> representing a constituency covering parts of the [[12th arrondissement of Paris|12th]] and [[20th arrondissement of Paris|20th arrondissements]].
==Early life and education== Avia is of [[Togo]]lese descent and grew up in [[Seine-Saint-Denis]], Paris’s northern suburbs.<ref>[https://www.france24.com/en/20170621-france-diversity-gains-ground-new-look-national-assembly-after-legislative-election Diversity gains ground in France's new-look National Assembly after vote] ''[[France 24]]'', 21 June 2017.</ref> Her parents moved there from Togo, where her father studied engineering and her mother was a midwife. In France, her father worked as an airport luggage handler and driver and her mother as a nurse. Avia acquired French nationality at age 13.<ref>Emilie Boyer King (5 March 2018), [https://www.france24.com/en/20180305-france-french-mp-racist-threat-laeticia-avia-fights-back-macron French MP Laetitia Avia victim of racist threats speaks up] ''[[France 24]]''.</ref>
Avia studied at [[Sciences Po]] in [[Paris]] and [[McGill University]]’s [[McGill University Faculty of Law|law school]] in [[Montreal]]. She began her career as a corporate lawyer with Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier before co-founding APE Avocats in 2016.<ref>[https://www.france24.com/en/20170621-france-diversity-gains-ground-new-look-national-assembly-after-legislative-election Diversity gains ground in France's new-look National Assembly after vote] ''[[France 24]]'', June 2017.</ref> Early in her career, she made her mark as a lawyer involved in corporate disputes and was active in projects in sub-Saharan Africa.<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-40510192 French MP Laetitia Avia counters cab-driver 'bite' claim] ''[[BBC News]]'', 5 July 2017.</ref>
==Political career== When [[Emmanuel Macron]] created his own party in 2016, then called En Marche, Avia joined and offered her help. Macron subsequently took her on as a legal expert.<ref>Emilie Boyer King (5 March 2018), [https://www.france24.com/en/20180305-france-french-mp-racist-threat-laeticia-avia-fights-back-macron French MP Laetitia Avia victim of racist threats speaks up] ''[[France 24]]''.</ref>
Avia was one of the first fourteen candidates selected by Macron to run as LREM candidate for the [[2017 French legislative election]]. She won the eighth district of Paris with 65 percent of the vote.<ref>[https://www.france24.com/en/20170621-france-diversity-gains-ground-new-look-national-assembly-after-legislative-election Diversity gains ground in France's new-look National Assembly after vote] ''[[France 24]]'', 21 June 2017.</ref> In parliament, she served on the Committee on Legal Affairs. In this capacity, she was the parliament’s [[rapporteur]] on [[hate speech]] legislation.<ref>Laura Kayali, Rym Momtaz and Nicholas Vinocur (10 May 2019), [https://www.politico.eu/article/emmanuel-macrons-plan-to-fix-facebook-youtube-and-twitter/ Emmanuel Macron’s plan to fix Facebook, YouTube and Twitter] ''[[Politico Europe]]''.</ref> In 2018, she proposed to classify discrimination against France’s regional accents – so-called “[[Linguistic discrimination|glottophobia]]” – with other forms of prohibited discrimination such as on grounds of sex or race.<ref>Myriam Rivet (19 October 2018), [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-accents/french-lawmaker-proposes-bill-to-outlaw-mockery-of-accents-idUSKCN1MT2BU French lawmaker proposes bill to outlaw mockery of accents] ''[[Reuters]]''.</ref> That same year, she was appointed [[rapporteur|co-rapporteur]] (with [[Didier Paris]]) on justice reform.
In addition to her committee assignments, Avia was a member of the French-Canadian Parliamentary Friendship Group and of the French-Ghanaian Parliamentary Friendship Group.
From late 2017 on, Avia was part of LREM's 20-member executive board under the leadership of the party's chairman [[Christophe Castaner]], in charge of communications.<ref>[https://en-marche.fr/articles/actualites/le-conseil-de-la-republique-en-marche Le Conseil de La République En Marche !] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171031233545/https://en-marche.fr/articles/actualites/le-conseil-de-la-republique-en-marche |date=31 October 2017 }} [[La République En Marche!]], press release of 16 October 2017.</ref><ref>[http://www.leparisien.fr/politique/sans-surprise-castaner-elu-a-la-tete-de-la-republique-en-marche-18-11-2017-7400367.php Castaner, à la tête de La République en marche, se veut «un animateur, un facilitateur»] ''[[Le Parisien]]'', 18 November 2017.</ref>
In September 2018, after [[Richard Ferrand]]'s election as president of the National Assembly, Avia announced her candidacy to succeed him as chair of the LREM group. In an internal vote, however, she was eliminated in the first ballot.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Siraud |first1=Mathilde |last2=Boichot |first2=Loris |title=Gilles Le Gendre succède à Richard Ferrand à la tête des députés LaREM |journal=[[Le Figaro]] |date=18 August 2018 |url=https://www.lefigaro.fr/politique/le-scan/2018/09/18/25001-20180918ARTFIG00146-presidence-du-groupe-larem-duel-entre-roland-lescure-et-gilles-le-gendre.php}}</ref> In July 2019, she stood as a candidate for the chairmanship of the Committee on Legal Affairs; however, she was defeated in the second round by the incumbent chairwoman, [[Yaël Braun-Pivet]].<ref>Mathilde Siraud and Loris Boichot (18 September 2018), [https://www.nouvelobs.com/politique/20190724.AFP1236/remaniement-des-postes-lrem-a-l-assemblee-large-prime-aux-sortants.html Remaniement des postes LREM à l'Assemblée: large prime aux sortants] ''[[L'Obs]]''.</ref>
In May 2020, Avia's draft law against hate speech, now referred to as the [[Avia Law (France)]]''',''' was adopted by the National Assembly.<ref>Laura Kayali (13 May 2020), [https://www.politico.eu/article/france-gives-final-green-light-to-law-cracking-down-on-hate-speech-online/ France gives final green light to law cracking down on hate speech online] ''[[Politico Europe]]''.</ref> Shortly after, it was challenged before the Constitutional Council by a group of conservative senators; the Council ruled in June 2020 that large parts of the law were unconstitutional.<ref>Laura Kayali (18 June 2020), [https://www.politico.eu/article/france-gives-final-green-light-to-law-cracking-down-on-hate-speech-online/ French constitutional court strikes down most of hate speech law] ''[[Politico Europe]]''.</ref>
After the second round of the legislative elections on the 19th of June 2020 she lost her position in the assembly, losing to Eva Sas.
==Controversies== In 2017, Avia was accused of biting a taxi driver. The driver's debit machine was not working and she did not have cash to pay the fare. When the driver continued to drive to a cash machine, the police report noted that she acknowledged she bit him to stop the car. She later denied the bite, saying that she had grabbed him by the shoulder. She filed a complaint against the driver for attempted theft and kidnapping while the driver filed a claim against her for assault.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/07/05/emmanuel-macron-accused-drunk-power-amid-french-far-left-calls/ Rising Macron star denies 'biting taxi driver' as French president faces claims he is 'drunk on power'.] Henry Samuel, TheTelegraph.co.uk, 5 July 2017.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=French MP counters driver 'bite' claim |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-40510192 |access-date=14 May 2020 |work=BBC News |date=5 July 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Kirby |first1=Will |title=Emmanuel Macron's MP 'BIT taxi driver over €12 cab fare because she had NO CASH on her' |url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/825531/emmanuel-macron-mp-laetitia-avia-bite-taxi-driver-fare |access-date=14 May 2020 |work=Express.co.uk |date=6 July 2017 |language=en}}</ref>
In a 12 May 2020 article from the online investigation site [[Mediapart]], former parliamentary assistants accused Avia of using racist, sexist and homophobic language in communicating with her team. They accused her of harassing an assistant with frequent racist comments in order to [[constructive discharge|get him to resign]] instead of having to fire him. The publication of this article happened the day before the final vote at the parliament for a law brought forth by Mrs Avia and aiming at censoring hate speech online.<ref name="Perrotin202005">{{cite journal |last1=Perrotin |first1=David |title=Laetitia Avia, la députée LREM qui horrifie ses assistants |journal=[[Mediapart]] |date=12 May 2020 |url=https://www.mediapart.fr/journal/france/120520/laetitia-avia-la-deputee-lrem-qui-horrifie-ses-assistants?onglet=full}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Paris |first1=Adam Sage |title=Macron's rising star Laetitia Avia accused of racism |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/macrons-rising-star-laetitia-avia-accused-of-racism-rs6kgbh5c |access-date=14 May 2020 |work=[[The Times]] |date=14 May 2020 |language=en}}</ref> On 18 May, her former collaborators announced that they would formally file a complaint for [[workplace harassment]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Macron's rising star Laetitia Avia accused of racism |url=https://www.ladepeche.fr/2020/05/18/danciens-collaborateurs-de-laetitia-avia-vont-porter-plainte-contre-la-deputee-lrem-pour-harcelement-moral,8893018.php |access-date=18 May 2020 |publisher=[[La Dépêche du Midi]] |date=18 May 2020 |language=fr}}</ref>
According to the previously mentioned Mediapart article, Avia asked her assistants to remove information about the taxi driver controversy from her article on the French language Wikipedia. In the history of the page journalists found modifications made by IP addresses from the French [[National Assembly]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.lesnumeriques.com/vie-du-net/comment-laetitia-avia-a-tente-de-caviarder-sa-fiche-wikipedia-n150287.html |date=13 May 2020 |first1=Corentin |last1=Bechade | title=Comment Laetitia Avia a tenté de caviarder sa fiche Wikipedia|language=fr}}</ref>
==Other activities== * African Business Lawyers Club (ABLC), Member<ref>Laura Thouny (4 July 2017), [https://www.nouvelobs.com/politique/20170704.OBS1634/10-choses-a-savoir-sur-laetitia-avia-la-deputee-citee-en-exemple-par-edouard-philippe.html 10 choses à savoir sur Laetitia Avia, la députée citée en exemple par Edouard Philippe] ''[[L'Obs]]''.</ref> * Club XXIe siècle, Member<ref>Laura Thouny (4 July 2017), [https://www.nouvelobs.com/politique/20170704.OBS1634/10-choses-a-savoir-sur-laetitia-avia-la-deputee-citee-en-exemple-par-edouard-philippe.html 10 choses à savoir sur Laetitia Avia, la députée citée en exemple par Edouard Philippe] ''[[L'Obs]]''.</ref>
==Political positions== In May 2018, Avia co-sponsored an initiative in favour of legalizing [[assisted reproductive technology]] (ART) for all women (singles, heterosexual couples or lesbian couples).<ref>[https://www.liberation.fr/debats/2018/05/29/la-pma-pour-toutes-un-acte-d-egalite_1655111 La PMA pour toutes, un acte d’égalité] ''[[Libération]]'', 29 May 2018.</ref>
In 2020, Avia was one of the LREM members who endorsed an animal welfare referendum calling for a ban on some hunting practices that are deemed “cruel.”<ref>Elisa Braun (31 August 2020), [https://www.politico.eu/article/tide-is-turning-for-frances-powerful-hunting-lobby-emmanuel-macron/ Macron’s glue-hunting ban threatens France’s powerful lobby] ''[[Politico Europe]]''.</ref>
==Personal life== Avia is married and lives with her partner in [[Vincennes]].<ref>Laura Thouny (4 July 2017), [https://www.nouvelobs.com/politique/20170704.OBS1634/10-choses-a-savoir-sur-laetitia-avia-la-deputee-citee-en-exemple-par-edouard-philippe.html 10 choses à savoir sur Laetitia Avia, la députée citée en exemple par Edouard Philippe] ''[[L'Obs]]''.</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avia, Laetitia}} [[Category:1985 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Deputies of the 15th National Assembly of the French Fifth Republic]] [[Category:Renaissance (French political party) politicians]] [[Category:21st-century French women politicians]] [[Category:People from Livry-Gargan]] [[Category:Women members of the National Assembly (France)]] [[Category:Sciences Po alumni]] [[Category:French people of Togolese descent]] [[Category:Black French politicians]] [[Category:Members of Parliament for Paris]]