Louvre Museum accused of discrimination

Anti-racism group files complaint against 'European preference' measure

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updated 2:33 p.m. ET May 27, 2009

PARIS - A French anti-racism group has filed a legal complaint against the Louvre Museum, claiming that a measure offering free admission to European young people is discriminatory.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a measure earlier this year offering European Union citizens aged 26 and under free admission to national museums. The Louvre is among several museums that chose to apply the measure.

The group SOS Racisme filed a legal complaint viewed Wednesday by The Associated Press. The group's vice president Samuel Thomas says the "European preference" is "the translation of an ideology of the extreme right."

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Culture Minister Christine Albanel has asked her staff to consider extending free admission to non-European young people in France.

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