The spectacular opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, criticized by religious authorities and conservative political leaders around the world, continues in the legal arena with the opening of an investigation in France into cyberbullying against its artistic director, Thomas Jolly.
The Paris prosecutor’s office opened the investigation on Wednesday after Thomas Jolly, artistic director of the four Games ceremonies, filed a complaint the day before, AFP learned on Friday from sources close to the case.
The director filed a complaint with the Brigade for the Repression of Crimes Against the Person (BRDP), “explaining that he was the target on social networks of threatening messages and insults criticizing his sexual orientation and his wrongly assumed Israeli origins,” confirmed the Paris prosecutor’s office.
The charges in his complaint are “death threats because of his origin, death threats because of his sexual orientation, public insult because of his origin, public insult because of his sexual orientation and defamation.”
Asked by AFP, the Paris Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games said it “provides its support” […] as well as to the authors and artists of the ceremony in the face of the attacks directed against them.”
“We strongly condemn the threats and harassment they are subjected to,” he added.
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, for her part brought ” [son] unwavering support for Thomas Jolly in the face of the threats and harassment he has been subjected to for several days.” “During the opening ceremony, Thomas Jolly held our values high. It was a source of pride and an honor for Paris to be able to count on his talent to magnify our city and tell the world what we are,” she continued in a press release.
Another investigation was opened on Tuesday in Paris, for aggravated cyber-harassment and death threats against French DJ Barbara Butch, a feminist and lesbian activist, who was featured in a controversial tableau performed by drag queens.
“Authors abroad”
While the creativity of the ceremony, held on July 26, was praised by many spectators, this painting titled Festivity fuels controversy in conservative and far-right circles abroad and in France.
Beginning with the image of a group seated at a table, including several famous drag queens (Nicky Doll, Paloma and Piche), it has been interpreted by some as a mocking parody of the last meal of Jesus with his apostles, the Last Supper, as depicted by Leonardo da Vinci, which the organizers deny, Thomas Jolly explaining that he wanted to represent a “great pagan festival linked to the gods of Olympus.”
Former US President and White House candidate Donald Trump called it a “disgrace”, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged Pope Francis to “speak out” alongside him against the “evil propaganda” he said the ceremony was spreading.
Contacted by AFP, the artistic director’s entourage did not immediately respond.
The investigation into Thomas Jolly, led by the National Unit for Combating Online Hate of the public prosecutor’s office, has been entrusted to the Central Office for Combating Crimes Against Humanity and Hate Crimes, sources close to the case said.
“Many of the hateful messages were written “in English,” one of them noted. While the geographic origin of the messages had not yet been identified Friday, “there are probably authors abroad,” this source said, stressing that the investigation was still in its early stages.
In addition to the criticism, a wave of hateful messages has swept across the networks. Many messages with violent language target Thomas Jolly himself, stressed one of the sources close to the case.