France has traditionally been socially liberal with regard to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights, and this is reflected in the country's legislation.
Sodomy laws
Before the French Revolution, sodomy was a serious crime. Jean Diot and Bruno Lenoir were the last homosexuals burned to death on 6 July 1750. The first French Revolution decriminalized homosexuality when the Penal Code of 1791 made no mention of same-sex relations in private. This policy on private sexual conduct was kept in the Penal Code of 1810, and followed in nations and French colonies that adopted the Code. Still, homosexuality and cross-dressing were widely seen as being immoral, and LGBT people were still subjected to legal harassment under various laws concerning public morality and order. Some homosexuals from the regions of Alsace and Lorraine, which were annexed by Nazi Germany in 1940, were persecuted and interned in concentration camps.
Higher age of consent
In the penal code, an age of consent was introduced on 28 April 1832. It was fixed to 11 years for both sexes, raised to 13 years in 1863. On 6 August 1942, the Vichy government introduced a discriminative law in penal code: article 334 (moved to article 331 on 8 February 1945 by the Provisional Government of the French Republic) increased the age of consent to 21 for homosexual relations and 15 for heterosexual ones. The age of 21 was then lowered to 18 in 1974, which had become the age of legal majority. This law remained valid until 4 August 1982, when it was repealed under president François Mitterrand to equalise the age of consent at 15 years of age, despite the vocal opposition of Jean Foyer in the French National Assembly.
Indecent exposure
A less known discriminative law was adopted in 1960, inserting into the penal code (article 330, 2nd alinea) a clause that doubled the penalty for indecent exposure for homosexual activity. This ordonnance was intended to repress of pimping. The clause against homosexuality was adopted due to a wish of Parliament, as follows:
This ordonnance was adopted by the executive after it was authorized by Parliament to take legislative measures against national scourges such as alcoholism. Paul Mirguet, a Member of the National Assembly, felt that homosexuality was also a scourge, and thus proposed a sub-amendment, therefore known as the Mirguet amendment, tasking the government to enact measures against homosexuality, which was adopted.
Article 330 alinea 2 was repealed in 1980 as part of an act redefining several sexual offenses.
Recognition of same-sex relationships
Civil Solidarity Pacts (PACS), a form of registered domestic partnership, were enacted in 1999 for both same-sex and unmarried opposite-sex couples by the government of Lionel Jospin. Couples who enter into a PACS contract are afforded most of the legal protections, rights, and responsibilities of marriage. The right to joint adoption and artificial insemination are also denied to PACS partners (and are largely restricted to heterosexual married couples), although there are proposals to extend the rights afforded by PACS and make them more similar to marriage [citation needed]. France's highest constitutional court ruled that stepchild adoption of biological children by same-sex couples is allowed. Unlike married couples, they were originally not allowed to file joint tax returns until after 3 years, though this was repealed in 2005, and joint tax returns can now be filed immediately.
Same-sex civil unions/domestic partnerships conducted under laws in foreign countries are only recognised for a few countries. Registered Civil Partnerships in the United Kingdom are not recognised - the only solution currently available for a couple in a Civil Partnership to gain PACS rights in France is to dissolve their Civil Partnership and then establish a PACS. Same-sex marriages from the Netherlands, by contrast, are already recognized. This does not however allow dual citizenship, which is reserved for opposite-sex couples. For example, a Frenchman who marries a Dutchman in the Netherlands, and therefore assumes Dutch nationality, automatically loses his French citizenship.
LGBT rights movement in France
LGBT rights organizations in France include Act Up Paris, SOS Homophobie, Arcadia, FHAR, GLH, CUARH, and L'Association Trans Aide, ( Trans Aid Association, established in September 2004).
Discrimination in schools
In March 2008, Xavier Darcos, Minister of Education, announced a policy fighting against all forms of discrimination, including homophobia, in schools, one of the first in the world. It was one of 15 national priorities of education for the 2008-2009 school year.
The Fédération Indépendante et Démocratique Lycéenne (FIDL) (Independent and Democratic Federation of High School Students) - the first high school student union in France - has also launched campaigns against homophobia in schools and among young people.
Public opinion
The current mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoë, publicly revealed his homosexuality in 1998, before his first election in 2001.
Polls have given mixed results for opinions of homosexuality in France. 55% of French people see homosexual couples as "an acceptable lifestyle".
In June 2006, an Angus Reid Global Scan poll revealed that 45% of French supported same-sex marriage, while 51% opposed. Additionally, 42% favored allowing "A female couple resorting to artificial insemination in order to have children", while 54% opposed; 41% favored allowing "The adoption of children by a female homosexual couple" (56% opposed); 36% favored allowing "The adoption of children by a homosexual couple (any gender)" (60% opposed); 35% favored allowing "The adoption of children by a male homosexual couple" (62% opposed); and 33% favored allowing "A male couple resorting to the artificial insemination of a woman in order to have children" (while 63% opposed).
In December 2006, an Ipsos-MORI Eurobarometer survey conducted in all member states of the European Union showed much more liberal-seeming results: 62% support same-sex marriage, while 37% were opposed. 55% believed gay and lesbian couples should not have parenting rights, while 44% believe same-sex couples should be able to adopt.
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