In Paris, the pride march in shock after the revocation of abortion in the United States
A participant in the Pride march holds a sign "Keep abortion legal", at Place de la Bastille in Paris, June 25, 2022. © Alain Jocard
Text by: RFI Follow
3 mins
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Paris for the pride march on Saturday June 25.
Despite the reinforcement of security at the request of the government, in particular after a shooting in the Norwegian capital of Oslo on Friday in front of a gay bar, the atmosphere was festive and demanding: LGBT activists and sympathizers are worried about the rollback of rights around the world.
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Despite light rain, the
LGBT+ pride parade
displayed rainbow colors everywhere on flags, umbrellas, t-shirts, hair, mouths and cheeks on Saturday, after two years tarnished by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The crowd set off on a march shortly after 2:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. UT) from the Porte Dorée towards the Place de la République in a festive atmosphere, including sound floats, as they had since the 1970s. The various LGBT associations or communities in Companies like Air France or the SNCF were present.
The authorities anticipated up to 35,000 people in the capital.
But
after a fatal shooting in the Norwegian capital of Oslo the day
before, outside a gay club, Paris decided to step up security.
But there was no concern among the participants, despite the shock for some of
the decision of the American Supreme Court to revoke the right to abortion
the day before.
Several of them displayed signs “
free hugs
” or called to “
imagine life gayly
” or even proclaimed: “
We
(
are) not monsters
”.
The Inter-LGBT associative collective, which organizes this march, has chosen “
our bodies, our rights, your faces
!
as a watchword.
Either an assumed virulent formula which aims in particular to protest against the “
trivialization
” of “
LGBTQIphobic and especially transphobic
speech
”, or a phenomenon that they consider ignored by the public authorities.
REPORT: Participants in the Pride march in Paris worried about a world where rights are receding
Laurence Theault
"
A great moment of claim
", not "
a big colorful party with good music
"
The march is also in solidarity with Ukraine.
As a symbol, the lesbian activist from this country at war Anna was the first to speak in the head square: "
There are two situations that really changed my life
: a very bad coming out there at twelve years old and then the war
”, she testified in French, rejoicing to be in front of “
free and courageous people
” and calling for support.
Other speeches followed to denounce homophobia, but also to worry about the rise of the far right, to highlight the fate of LGBT + migrants or to be moved by the Court's decision on Friday. American supreme court to revoke the right to abortion: an activist also insisted that the march is "
a great moment of demand
" and not "
a big colorful party with good music
".
►Also read
:
Lebanon: the Minister of the Interior prohibits the celebration of "pride day"
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