Paris (France) (AFP) – Tens of thousands of people, rainbow flags in hand and flower leis around their necks, marched in Paris on Saturday to defend the rights of LGBT+ people worried about the rise of the far right.

Published on: 03/10/2026 - 15:52 Modified on: 03/10/2026 - 21:07

There were some 500,000, according to the organizer, Inter-LGBT, and 74,000, according to the police headquarters, to have gathered in favor of lesbian, gay, bisexual or even transgender and transsexual people.

Last year, organizers also claimed 500,000 participants, while police reported fewer than 100,000 people.

Behind trucks with speakers spewing big sound and a few drag queens dancing on stage to set the mood, many of the participants brandished signs like “These fachos piss me off”; “Fuck RN”; "+ love, - from Zemmour"; "- from RN + from Lesbians.

“In the fight and now in the march, at the citizens' polls!”, harangued before the start of the procession, Alexandre Schon, co-president of the Inter-LGBT, which brings together around fifty associations.

“Our anger must be transformed into victory because hate speech and discrimination against trans people, same-sex people and sex workers are increasing,” he said.

“It’s the day of love, we need it right now, don’t we?” says Lucie Dia. "We have to stop saying we are different because we don't have the same color, the same sexuality, the same religion. We want to show that we love each other and that we are here. There are all colors here and that's what's beautiful," continues the thirty-year-old accompanied by her sixty-year-old mother, who also came to defend "the need for tolerance and solidarity"

Maxence Rolland, 20 years old, who came with two childhood friends of the same age, participated in his first pride "for the friendly atmosphere, the curiosity", holding a sign "proud as a pan".

“Important to be visible”

“I am straight but I want to support them,” says Aurélie Féru alongside her, joined by Célestin Raby who also “wants to show that LGBT people are not just among themselves” and can count on people who “are not affected by discrimination”.

This type of event allows mentalities to change “in the right direction”, thinks Célestin, “even if there are political currents which try to stifle sexual freedom and progressive movements”.

"It's important to be visible before a period that is going to be complicated for us, with the far right in France, but also in Germany, England, Spain, Portugal, with the common point of attacking trans people to essentialize women", also confides to AFP, Anaïs Perrin-Prevelle, president of OUTrans, an association for the defense of transgender people.

“It’s important that LGBT people are visible because many are persecuted around the world,” shares Amélie Lounya, 23, in the procession.

Several left-wing political figures were seen in the front square, including the PS mayor of Paris Emmanuel Grégoire, the MP for La France insoumise Sophia Chikirou, the LFI European MP Manon Aubry and the environmentalist MP Sandrine Rousseau. The leader of La France insoumise, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, was also present in the procession.

Pride marches are organized locally by associations throughout France, often in June, in connection with the Stonewall riots, the founding mobilization of the LGBT+ movement, which took place on the night of June 27 to 28, 1969, in New York.

© 2026 AFP

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