With only days before a gay marriage law is set to take effect in France, thousands poured into the streets of Paris on Sunday to demand its repeal.
The legislation, which takes effect on Wednesday, makes France the 14th nation to legalize such unions.
An estimated 150,000 protestors gathered at the historic Esplanade des Invalides, turning the area into a sea of pink and blue flags.
The movement is being shored up by the increasing discontent with President Francois Hollande, who campaigned on the issue of marriage equality and is blamed for the nation’s economic ills.
A banner calling on Hollande to quit was hung by far-right demonstrators on the ruling Socialist Party headquarters.
Opponents won an early victory when the government decided against legalizing assisted procreation and surrogate motherhood for gay couples in the marriage law. Opponents said that they would continue to demonstrate against those reforms.
Absent from the event was Frigide Barjot, whose group Manif Pour Tous (Demonstration For All) organized the event. Barjot greeted protesters at a Paris station but said threats of unrest by far-right groups were behind her decision not to take part.
Nearly 5,000 police were mobilized to secure the event.
by Carlos Santoscoy
Source – On Top Magazine
