Testimonials. Sexual assault during a concert in Lille, « would you like someone to do that to your sister, your girlfriend or your mother? »

Women denounced sexual assault during the concert of Fatals Picards and Marcel and his orchestra, on May 7, at the Zenith in Lille. Both groups want to be intransigent in the face of these behaviors. The testimonies highlight recurring deviant behavior during these evenings.

The concert of the Fatals Picards and Marcel and his orchestra will not have been a festive moment for everyone. Several fans, mostly women, denounced sexual assault, behavior and inappropriate comments during the show which brought together 4,500 people at the Zenith in Lille, this Saturday, May 7, 2022.

The opportunity for some of them to denounce the recurrence of these problems during the concerts.

Charlotte Loncq, 20, a student, arrived an hour and a half before the start of the concert with her companion, « because it’s a group that we like« . Accustomed to punk, rock and metal festivals, the young woman knows « that it moves and that it jostles« . The first part takes place in the « good mood ».

It was when Marcel and his orchestra arrived that she noticed a change in the mood. « There was a pogo [moment où les spectateurs sautent et se bousculent], I was separated from my boyfriend. I’ve told several people I can’t breathe, I’m 5’6, they’re 5’8 « . She says that we look at her and tell her that « itit’s a pity« , without helping her at first. So, she manages to make a place for herself against the barrier  » to breathe better « .

Charlotte explains that spectators throw themselves at her, « men of 1m80, healthy“. She decides to talk again,”because I’m not afraid to say things » and a spectator retorts to him « you, you’re the last girl in front and we intend to make you leave« .

Already I don’t feel good in the street, at university, at work, if I don’t feel safe in places of leisure, it won’t work.

She then turns to the stage and feels a hand »grab his butt. » « But I couldn’t see who it was. The crowd took it away A feeling of unease sets in. Several people rub against her. thanks to two other men that she will succeed in extricating herself from this situation and rejoining her companion.

Patricia, too, experienced a sexual assault during the concert. « I suffered touching, first on the first floorshe recalls. A gentleman came next to me, put his hand around my waist and squeezed my hips tight« . While ironing some time later, he put « a hand on the buttocks« .

But the nightmare does not end there. As she descends into the pit, a man turns to her and throws « a whole goblet of beer in her face ». Patricia says to herself « angry, annoyed« , « not good, a little disgusted« and plans to file a complaint against X in the hope that it can »to move things forward a little, if there are several of us doing it, it may have an impact« .

A gentleman came to my side, put his hand around my waist and squeezed my hips tight.

Patricia

In the comments to the Facebook post, many people agree. A young woman notes « inappropriate gestures, and above all a whole glass of beer » thrown in the face. Another, accustomed to the shows of the Fatals Picards, speaks of an atmosphere « different » of the group’s other concerts.

The Fatals Picards group did not wait long before reacting in a Facebook message. He denounces « very inappropriate gestures, remarks almost as much, sexual assaults, attitudes from another age that seemed to betray a total lack of respect and education« .

They also announce that they are doing everything possible to erase these behaviors from the map « at odds with our vision of human relationships« .

This message has « do well » to Charlotte, who said to himself « glad to see that[elle n’était] not the only one to have experienced this« . Moreover, this post « allows people to react and find each other« . Comments very quickly poured in, reporting similar facts.

For his part, Franck de Marcel and his orchestra also condemn these attacks. « It’s abominable, I can’t have two cents of indulgence for redneck behavior like that »he protested at the microphone of France 3 Hauts-de-France.

Would you like someone to do that to your sister, your girl, your mother? What does it mean ? It’s just despicable.

Franck de Marcel and his orchestra

He mentioned the group’s concert in Lille in 2004, where the violence of the pogos pushed them to interrupt the concert to put the crowd in order. « We felt it was very hot, we said ohlala, we’re going to stop, it’s going to be dangerous. And we did it many times« .

Another problem that has been highlighted by both groups and victims of sexual assault is visibility in the crowd. In concert halls, the pits are very often plunged into darkness and the spectators are crowded.

It then becomes difficult to distinguish the silhouettes from each other. « You don’t see everything, the rooms are sometimes very very dark“, regrets Frank. This explains why it was difficult for Patricia to follow her attacker, whom she had managed to quickly glimpse before he disappeared, because « there were so many people, we couldn’t see« .

Same thing for Charlotte, who couldn’t see the one who had it. touched because « the crowd took it away« .

Beyond the concert of the Fatals Picards and Marcel and his orchestra, many people denounce repeated behavior. Internet users report « gestures that have become systematic« during shows or else »an identical scenario at the Franz Ferdinand concert“, on May 6 at the Zénith de Lille.

For her part, Charlotte Loncq has already noticed inappropriate attitudes and touching on other occasions, « but these are isolated behaviors, I have already done punk and rock concerts with heavy guys who tried to flirt with me, to touch me, except that people intervene« . But in the case of this concert, « there was no intervention before the help of the two men, I had the impression of being in danger« .

In reality Sexual assaults in the pits are not uncommon. Already in 2019, victims of sexual violence in festivals testified on Konbini of their fed up. In Bordeaux, in 2021, a man was arrested for sexual assault during the Climax festival. The same year, the Marseille rapper Soso Maness interrupted a concert to help a harassed spectator.

However, this problem does not only concern France. This is not the first time that such facts have been reported internationally. In the Netherlands, singer Sam Carter of the group Architects also interrupted his concert after witnessing a sexual assault in public. Same scenario in Sydney, Australia, during the show of Canadian rapper Drake.

In addition to security guards, artists and fans are calling for more solidarity during concerts. If Charlotte was able to be escorted by two men, sheltered, it took her time to get out of this ordeal.

« Now, it is also up to the spectators, to have a eye a little bit about the people next to them then to help people who may be in distressconcludes Franck, calling on the responsibility of the spectators. Concerts are also moments of solidarity. And solidarity is not just for yourself, it’s for everyone. »