It was with an abnormally quavering voice that Julien Pontes, spokesperson for Rouge direct, expressed World, Tuesday October 31, his dismay regarding the suspension of his collective’s activities. A few hours earlier, those who define themselves as “whistleblowers” specialized in the fight against homophobia in football justified on X (formerly Twitter) this decision by a significant and worrying increase in “massive homophobic cyberharassment and death threats” targeting them.
Created in 2016, Rouge direct is a collective whose goal is to relay all homophobic acts in the world of football and to raise the alarm on this subject. And the task is not easy: five people work on it “permanent”, every day. The collective – which does not even have a bank account, because subsidies “wouldn’t be of any use to them”affirms its manager – task of “identify as many homophobic acts as possible, everything that the Professional Football League does not do [LFP] », says Julien Pontes. For this, Rouge direct receives evidence from all over France, sent by “simple people wishing to fight against homophobia”.
Since the denunciation of the homophobic chants heard in the aisles of the Parc des Princes during the PSG-OM match on September 24, the daily life of activists – already not always easy – has become a nightmare. “We stopped counting, but in the previous days we received more than 350 death threatssays, shocked, the spokesperson for the collective. A colleague even received an unfriendly visit from PSG supporters to his home. For our safety, the lawyer said stop. »
“The authorities make impunity reign”
In this fight, Rouge direct feels neglected. After meeting the Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, on August 31, the collective thought they had been heard by a political figure “very cooperative”. Today, Julien Pontes regrets the lack of strong decision-making on the part of the minister, whom he suspects of having backed down “faced with pressure from the LFP and the French Football Federation”. For him, “these two authorities ensure impunity against homophobia in the world of football”, “this cause does not interest them”. The spokesperson takes the example of the new club license – which French clubs are obliged to obtain in order to receive certain television rights. “Clubs must reach 7,000 points to have the license. The condition of the lawn is worth 1,300 points, when a workshop organized against homophobia or racism brings in 100… This is where we are”he laments.
To resume its activity, the collective demands three actions from the Minister of Sports. He hopes that Amélie Oudéa-Castéra will take the time to report these death threats to the prosecutor, that she implements the concrete proposals of Rouge direct presented during the August meeting and that the collective is occasionally integrated into the work of the National Supporterism Authority. “We are counting on a rapid and responsible response from the minister”summarizes Julien Pontes.
Contacted, the Ministry of Sports had not responded to our requests at the end of the day on Tuesday. The collective managed to contact the minister’s office, which reportedly said, according to Rouge direct, that“Amélie Oudéa-Castéra will not provide public support for the collective”.