French police investigating abuse targeting Olympic opening ceremony DJ over ‘Last Supper’ tableau

PARIS (AP) — A storm of shock about the Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony — together with indignant feedback from Donald Trump — took a authorized flip Tuesday, with French prosecutors ordering police to research complaints of on-line abuse from a DJ and LGBTQ+ icon who carried out.

DJ Barbara Butch stated she suffered a torrent of on-line threats within the wake of a contentious scene on the Video games’ opening ceremony. A lawyer for Butch informed The Related Press that she had filed a proper authorized criticism alleging on-line harassment, loss of life threats, and insults. The lawyer, Audrey Msellati, stated the criticism doesn’t title any particular perpetrator or perpetrators of the alleged crimes.

The Paris prosecutor’s workplace confirmed that it acquired Butch’s criticism and stated it tasked a police unit that makes a speciality of combating hate crimes to research. The police probe will give attention to “discriminatory messages primarily based on faith or sexual orientation that had been despatched to her or posted on-line,” it stated.

Though the ceremony’s inventive director Thomas Jolly has repeatedly stated that he wasn’t impressed by “The Final Supper,” critics interpreted a part of the present that featured Butch as a mockery of Leonardo Da Vinci’s portray displaying Jesus Christ and his apostles. Butch, who calls herself a “love activist,” wore a silver headdress that appeared like a halo as she received a celebration going throughout her section of the present. Drag artists, dancers and others flanked Butch on each side.

Trump, in the US, stated Monday he thought it was “a shame.”

“I’m very open-minded,” the previous president and present Republican nominee informed Fox Information host Laura Ingraham, who particularly requested about comparisons to “The Final Supper,” “however I assumed what they did was a shame.”

French Catholic bishops and others had been amongst those that stated Christians had been harm and offended. Paris Olympics organizers have stated there was “by no means an intention to indicate disrespect to any spiritual group” and that the intent was to “have fun neighborhood tolerance.”

Jolly has stated he noticed the second as a celebration of variety, and the desk on which Butch spun her tunes as a tribute to feasting and French gastronomy.

“My want isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock,” Jolly stated. “Most of all, I wished to ship a message of affection, a message of inclusion and by no means to divide.”

Performer Philippe Katerine, who appeared within the subsequent scene painted blue and practically nude in a tribute to Dionysus, additionally informed Le Monde newspaper that “The Final Supper” had not been referenced in any respect in preparations for the general sketch.

In an announcement of her personal, posted on Instagram, Butch stated: “No matter some could say, I exist. I’ve by no means been ashamed of who I’m, and I take accountability for every thing – together with my inventive selections. All my life, I’ve refused to be a sufferer: I received’t shut up.”

She stated she “was extraordinarily honored” to carry out in Friday’s ceremony and “my coronary heart continues to be stuffed with pleasure.”

“I’m dedicated, and I’m proud. Happy with who I’m, of what I’m, and of what I embody, each for my family members and for thousands and thousands of French individuals. My France is France !” she wrote.

In an AP interview Tuesday, Msellati described Butch as in “a combating spirit” — desperate to defend herself and her selections, and nonetheless very pleased with her participation. “She has no regrets, even now,” the lawyer stated.

She stated hateful messages focusing on Butch are “arriving virtually each minute,” and that Jolly and the ceremony’s drag artists have additionally been focused by cyberbullying.

One other performer within the controversial scene, drag queen Paloma, stated Tuesday that she had not filed her personal criticism.

However, she stated, “if the insults proceed, I’ll be part of my good friend Barbara Butch in her strategy. For now, I’m making an attempt to give attention to the on the hundreds of loving messages I obtain.”

Of the criticism, Paloma stated her “first response is to say that if Donald Trump shouldn’t be reacting, then we’ve not carried out our job. Sadly, we had been going to get a adverse response it doesn’t matter what we did.” She additionally stated it was hypocritical for critics to make use of faith as a foundation for “a response that may be very homophobic, very transphobic, queer-phobic, drag-phobic, even antisemitic and fatphobic.”

And one other drag queen within the scene, Piche, stated she was “actually completely happy that queer individuals had been in a position to be represented on this present. There was no second that the concept of offending somebody or a faith was on any person’s thoughts. It was only a joyful, completely happy popular culture second that many of the planet felt.”

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AP journalists Nicolas Vaux-Montagny and Kwiyeon Ha contributed reporting.

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For extra protection of the Paris Olympics, go to https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games.