France Started the Clown Trend In 2014

The Clown Craze swept through France before it hit the U.S. and London. Below is an article we posted two years ago which was when the rise of the clowns began!

DATE: 2014

You might want to rethink that romantic trip to France. A terror is sweeping the country, horrifying locals and causing panic. You see, southern France is being terrorized by a plague of clowns. We like American Horror Story: Freak Show as much as the next person, but this is ridiculous.

Gangs of evil clowns are roaming the streets of France, inspiring abject terror throughout various regions of the European country. Police recently arrested a gang of teenagers dressed as clowns in the south of France. These young delinquents were armed with knives, pistols, and baseball bats. Apparently the adolescents hoped to terrify the locals and exacerbate the panic surrounding clowns in the area. But believe it or not, this isn't an isolated circus-inspired incident.

In another city, a man was arrested after beating a pedestrian with an iron crowbar. The perpetrator had donned the guise of a clown, apparently hoping this disguise would protect him. This has done nothing to reassure the populace, which has taken to peering cautiously around corners lest they be confronted by a cruel clown.

Not every clown is assaulting the populace. There have been other, less violent incidents. Throughout the region people have reported being stalked and frightened by menacing clowns; simply standing on street corners in full clown regalia can inspire discomfort at best and abject terror at worst. Most of these clowns aren't violent in nature, preferring to get their kicks by scaring teenagers and pedestrians.

So what the heck is going on in France? Why this sudden predilection for putting on circus makeup and horrifying people? Sure, Halloween is fast approaching, but that's no excuse for dressing up as the scariest of circus performers. Some officials have theorized that the Internet is to blame. Videos of people getting pranked can rack up millions of hits on YouTube and this sensation can inspire people to put on clown makeup and go horrify the neighbors. Others worry there might be more sinister factors behind this clown craze (maybe they watched It too many times as a kid). Whatever the cause (and theories abound), this trend seems to be expanding, ranging from harmless pranks to outright acts of violence.

Unsurprisingly, people aren't thrilled about the idea of being chased down the street by a clown. Some towns have started anti-clown gangs that patrol the area, ensuring no costumed pranksters are stirring up trouble. This behavior is not condoned by officials, who would rather people not resort to vigilante justice under any circumstances. A group of teenagers who decided to pit themselves against prankster clowns were subsequently arrested for arming themselves against the circus menace.

Authorities have reassured the populace that they are dealing with this clown crisis, and that this is a lot of panic over very few actual incidences. For every clown sighting, there are countless false claims of menacing face-painted fiends terrorizing the populace. The Halloween-themed fear isn't helping matters, stirring people up and causing them to see frightening figures in the shadows. Hopefully this trend fades with the season, and the clown alarm becomes nothing more than a strange and baffling memory for the people of France. Whatever happens, this entire situation has proven one thing to be true: Not everybody loves a clown.

[Pic via Flickr - Graeme Maclean]