a new upsurge in homophobic acts

Since 2023, Julien Colonna, the manager of a gay bar in the city center of Bordeaux (Gironde), has received offensive letters in his mailbox. After several years of tranquility, he felt the climate deteriorating. “It’s starting to talk about threats again, about fags. (…) I’m not afraid for myself, far from it, but I’m still afraid for my employees”, he said. From insults to physical attacks and threats, the year 2023 saw a further increase in homophobic offenses: 4,560 acts recorded, an increase of 13%.

Crimes and misdemeanors increased by 19%, with the worrying appearance of homophobic ambushes, organized through false advertisements on dating applications. “The majority of French people completely agree with the idea that we are people with the same rights and duties as all other people. But there is a very small minority who remain tough, and who, radicalizes, analyzes Flora Bolter, co-director of the LGBTI+ Observatory of the Jean Jaurès Foundation. Only one in five victims of homophobic acts file a complaint.