French LGBTQ campaigner vows to continue fight after 'despicable' Paris attack

French police officer and LGBTQ rights campaigner Pierre Picavet has vowed to continue fighting discrimination after he was violently attacked outside a bar in Paris this weekend. The suspect of what Paris mayor has described as a "despicable" attack appears in court on Monday. Issued on: 31/08/2026 - 11:57 2 min Reading time Picavet, a police officer and president of FLAG!, an association defending the rights of LGBTQ people within France's justice and interior ministries, was attacked as he left a bar in the Marais district of central Paris in the early hours of Saturday. He was struck with a bottle and suffered multiple injuries, including internal bleeding, a head wound and a black eye, the Paris prosecutor's office said. "When I get better, when my wounds have healed, I will continue the fight," he told France Inter radio on Monday. "I am particularly shocked, but it tells me that there is still work to do," he said. Police officer and LGBTQ activist Pierre Picavet suffered multiple injuries. © Screengrab from STOP Homophobia website Suspect in court The suspected attacker, a man born in 2006, was due to appear in court in Paris on Monday in an immediate trial. Prosecutors said the suspect had repeatedly directed a homophobic slur at Picavet during the assault. Picavet told prosecutors that he immediately identified himself as a police officer and showed his police ID, but the suspect continued the attack. The suspect was taken into custody. Prosecutors said he had no previous criminal record and was intoxicated at the time of the assault. Toxic climate blamed for rise in LGBTQI+ attacks in France 'Despicable' homophobic attack The anti-homophobia group STOP Homophobie condemned what it described as a homophobic attack and published photographs showing Picavet's injuries. "STOP Homophobie condemns this attack in the strongest possible terms and stresses that anti-LGBT+ violence remains a reality," the group said. Picavet said he had spent much of his 18 months as head of FLAG! raising awareness among members of the association to prevent such attacks. "Each person must take responsibility so that this kind of individual is not out on the streets attacking people because they are trans or gay," he said. Paris mayor Emmanuel Grégoire also condemned what he called "this despicable homophobic attack". "We will never surrender our streets to hatred," he said on X, adding that Paris would remain "a refuge, a bulwark and a city of freedom for everyone".