The photo of Collboni

On Sant Jordi day, Mayor Jaume Collboni posted a photograph on his personal Instagram account, in which he appears holding hands with who is presumed to be his partner. The two men are shown from behind; the mayor is wearing a dark blue blazer, a white shirt, and shoes, while his companion is wearing sunglasses, more casual clothes, and sneakers, and holding a rose in his hand, presumably given by the mayor. Although it is a photo taken from behind, Collboni is perfectly identifiable because his face is slightly turned towards his partner; however, his partner's face is practically hidden, and he has not been tagged in the image, presumably to preserve his anonymity.

The couple walks along Passeig de Gràcia and does not seem to attract anyone's attention ---the photo must have been taken early on April 23, because unlike what traditionally happens from midday onwards, they do not have to elbow their way through the crowd---. In the language of photojournalism, we could say it is a candid shot or, more accurately, a photograph with the appearance of a candid shot, not because it was taken by a paparazzi without the couple's permission, but because, far from the classic posed shot typical of a cover of Hola magazine, the photo of Collboni and his partner seeks to convey spontaneity, authenticity.

However, I am convinced that neither the composition of the photograph nor the decision to publish it, and to do so precisely on Sant Jordi, has anything improvised about it; quite the opposite, it is a very carefully thought-out image published with a clear intention. Because it is not a purely personal gesture, but also a political one. This is confirmed by the fact that the photograph is accompanied by a brief but meaningful text, "Love, culture, and pride," reinforced with two very powerful icons: the rainbow flag and the red heart. With this publication, Collboni claims not only for himself but for the entire collective the right to show oneself in love on the city streets, also on Sant Jordi, and thus combat those who believe that the mayor's love life belongs to his private sphere and should not be proclaimed from the rooftops, especially if he is gay.

It may seem obvious, but, given the current times, it might be worth emphasizing: Collboni has the same right to do so, to appear in public as a couple, as Colau, Trias, Hereu, Clos or Maragall did in their time. However, in his case, as a member of a collective that still has to fight for the right to visibility, that still needs role models and that must always be attentive to the attempts of those who would like to return them to the closet or to worse places, this gesture also has an undeniable political charge.

That most of the comments on the publication were to congratulate the mayor made me happy. In this sense, I thought how lucky it was that the mayor had not set foot in the X cesspool for months, where I can imagine the reactions the photo would have provoked. One only has to see the avalanche of homophobic insults that young Barça footballer Héctor Fort has received for the simple fact of appearing in a fun photograph taken during a solidarity sports gala with my dear Briggita Lamoure, a cupletista and LGTBIQ+ activist, in his arms. I don't even want to imagine what would happen if, for example, next Sant Jordi, a first-team Barça player, just to say something, dared to do the same as Mayor Collboni has done this year.