France - The Defender of Rights - Anti-discrimination

Fighting against discrimination and promoting equality
To treat a person unfairly on the basis of his or her ethnic origin, sex, age, state of health, lifestyle, opinions... (in total, 20 elements are established by law) is strictly prohibited by French law and the international conventions approved by France.
You may appeal to the Defender of Rights if you believe you have been the victim of discrimination, either direct or indirect.

Who can refer cases to the Defender of Rights?

• a private person (a natural person acting on his/her own behalf)
• an association or group whose bylaws promote anti-discrimination efforts. It must be properly declared and in operation for at least 5 years at the time of the action. The appeal to the Defender of Rights must be made with the consent and the cooperation of the person claiming to be a victim of discrimination.
• The Defender of Rights may also take up a case on his own initiative in cases of suspected discrimination

What are the criteria of discrimination?
The law forbids any distinction or unequal treatment on the basis of:

• the geographic origin, family name, place of residence, belonging or not belonging to an ethnic group, a race, or a certain nation, whether these are real or presumed
• sex, sexual orientation, sexual identity, lifestyle
• age, marital status, pregnancy
• state of health, disability, physical appearance, genetic characteristics
• religion, political opinions, union activity

What kinds of inequality of treatment are involved?
The Defender of Rights may intervene in many types of discrimination, for example in matters of:

• access to employment
• access to housing
• access to goods and services, both public and private (access to a nightclub, a public building, credit…)
• access to care and to social services
• education and training (as a condition for enrolment, admission, evaluation). More...