2024-01-21 10:02:36
It never really counted, but there were several thousand, even more than 10,000. In a dozen years, that’s how many different people Yago has hugged. But don’t see this 44-year-old Swiss as a sort of Don Juan. Let’s rather call him “assiduous free hugger”, as he calls himself on social networks. Because the thing of Avoidis to offer free hugs, in all honor.
Accompanied by his panel, he wandered his country for a long time looking for strangers to hug in the street. “A good hug must be sincere, reciprocal, and last several seconds,” assures this radio host with the long beard, who has been slowing down for several years, notably not for lack of time. Beyond the gesture, what I like is that there is a real exchange each time. »
This Sunday, on this International Hug Day, it is a safe bet that passers-by will engage in this strange practice all over the world. Since this movement was born in the early 2000s in Australia, many have wanted to imitate this student who, depressed by feeling alone in Sydney – despite his hometown -, would have been the first to brandish the sign “Free hugs” to spread shots of tenderness around him.
A simple hug to “give people pleasure”
France has not escaped this fashion. The movement never really took off, but it persisted. And while it is not uncommon to see a sign flourish during demonstrations or tributes, there is not always a need for a particular reason to hug. “Like the second Tuesday of each month, there will be around ten of us on Sunday at 4 p.m. rue Sainte-Catherine, confirms Francis, who has led the Free Hugs Bordeaux group since 2017. For what ? Quite simply to give people pleasure for two hours. It’s amazing what smiles a simple hug can create, among young people but also isolated elderly people. Why should this be reserved for certain occasions, and only within one’s family circle? »
Sometimes seen as originals, these “fierce cuddlers” from Bordeaux, “of all ages and from all backgrounds”, can rely on Science to justify their actions. In 2019, psychologist Céline Rivière published an enriched version of her work entitled Cuddle therapyrecalling how contact is necessary to the good health of babies but also of humans, in particular thanks to the production of oxytocin. “Even in the rain, despite the physical fatigue of staying with your arm raised, you come out energized,” Yago promises. Since then, certain professionals have happily exploited the concept, some even going so far as to open dedicated offices…
Covid slowed down the movement
But Science has not only been a friend to the free huggers. Because in Paris, it has now been four years since any stranger has really been able to enjoy these few moments of comfort. The fault is Covid-19 and the famous social distancing, which stopped overnight these meetings which were held in front of Notre-Dame, the Pompidou center, or even in the metro. “It had the merit of breaking the shell of people who are no longer used to talking or looking at each other,” observes Miron, a 47-year-old psychomotor therapist and coordinator of the Parisian group. I want to resume as quickly as possible because beyond the benefit of the hug, there is a message of peace, to show that we are all brothers, we need it. »
If free hugs today seem to be more common during events or conventions, Thierry did not want to wait any longer to relaunch the practice in public spaces, in the Marseille region. For its first session, last month near a shopping center in Aix-en Provence, “it had trouble getting started. But as soon as the first passerby starts, people come naturally,” he says.
For the meeting this Sunday (2 p.m.) in the Old Port of Marseille, he has his technique to ensure that everything goes well, in particular to avoid certain criticism linked to consent. “I try to find the look and I understand quickly. If I’m ignored, I’ll give up. If there is a little smile, I open my arms and then let spontaneity happen. Without ever forcing! »
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