‘Gay Village’ Follow Up: Le Village

Danny Silver, managing director of the Villages Group, claims that the ‘Gay Village’ hoax orchestrated by the Pink Monday Foundation, Roze Maandag, has led to an increase in enquiries for France’s first LGBT community. Silver claims the company saw an increase in enquiries for their gay friendly ‘Le Village’ project after the hoax was reported widely across The Netherlands, according to OPP Connect. Described on their website as “a private oasis for the Gay & Lesbian (LGBT) Community who want an Active & Healthy Lifestyle”, Le Village in Sallèles-d’Aude is the latest in a series of gay friendly businesses in France following the legalization of gay marriage earlier this year. Far from the Roze Maandag cries for LGBT rights and protections, the Village development has emerged as the result of a business ‘experiment’. Silver revealed that the decision to market their planned community to the LGBT community arose after a downturn in the real estate market, according to the Daily Mail. Since changing their strategy, Silver boasts that they have received “thousands of emails every hour”. Despite increased interest in the Le Village project, gay rights advocates in Tilburg show no interest is starting a similar project in The Netherlands. In an online statement, the Pink Monday Foundation states that they are pleased by the negative reactions towards the hoax. “It is great to hear that the majority is against the idea. All we wanted was to create awareness, and we are certain that we succeeded in this”.