Adult-only hotels and facilities could be under threat in France after a new campaign against the “no kids trend” accuses them of dividing society and excluding children.
The push to end adults-only travel and tourism comes amid a dispute over whether intolerance is growing against children in France. This has been seen in groups such as the French Federation of Nurseries, which has campaigned for children’s right "to make noise".
France's high commissioner for childhood, Sarah El Haïry, held a roundtable on Tuesday (May 27) with key players from the tourism and travel industry to discuss adult-only policies, as some politicians call for child-free spaces to be banned.
"There is a growing intolerance, and we must not allow it to take hold," Ms El Haïry told broadcaster RTL. "Children and families are being pushed out and, in a way, this is real violence being experienced.”
"It's not in our culture, it's not our philosophy, and it's not what we want to see as the norm in our country."
“A child shouts, laughs and moves … we are institutionalising the idea that silence is a luxury and the absence of children is a luxury,” she added to radio station RFI, according to The Times.
The move against adult-only hotels, restaurants and other facilities is not aimed at couples who choose to remain childless, but at adults who do not want to be disturbed by children, she said.
Ms El Haïry also said children are being put “in front of a cartoon” on public transport due to people complaining about noisy children, putting pressure on parents to keep them quiet.
The commissioner added that lawyers are mulling over whether it would be feasible to take legal action against establishments that do not allow children.
However, some lawyers say that there is no need for a new bill because they argue adult-only spaces could already be breaching laws that prohibit discrimination against “origin, gender, family situation or age,” The Times reports.
While the Travel Companies Union roughly estimates that only three per cent of commercial offers are adult-only facilities, this is not the first time French officials have tried to end no-children zones.
Socialist senator Laurence Rossignol introduced a bill a year ago that would make it illegal to ban children from venues in France.
Ms Rossignol said at the time that the bill is aimed at promoting "a society that is open to children".
The senator's bill proposed that "the exclusion of minors from living spaces, public spaces, commercial spaces, transport and any other exclusion that is not justified by safety requirements specific to children or by the lack of civil capacity also constitutes discrimination”.
Ms Rossignol also responded to Ms El Haïry ’s anti-adult-only campaign on X, stating: “A year ago, when Ms El Haïry was Minister for Children, and to the utmost indifference of the government, I tabled a bill against no-kids places.
“I welcome her awareness. And if she wants to act, she should have this bill examined by Parliament.”
While the socialist senator "is pleased that the government is taking up the issue”, she doubts "the ability of commerce to self-regulate without a law that imposes a minimum requirement," and is therefore calling on the government to put its bill on the agenda of the Senate or the National Assembly.
"We cannot allow our society to be organised around our intolerance of others, where people organise themselves to keep their distance from anyone who does not fit into their idea of their neighbours," she added in a statement on Wednesday.
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