Preeminent singer-songwriter Bob Dylan is facing preliminary charges by French authorities for comments he made during a 2012 Rolling Stone magazine interview in which he equated Croatians to Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan, The Associated Press reported.
The lawsuit stemmed from a Croatian community group within France angered by Dylan's comments. The charges of "public insult and inciting hate" were filed against Dylan in mid November, just two days before he received the French Legion of Honor at the Culture Ministry in Paris, but they were not confirmed until Tuesday by the Paris prosecutor's office spokeswoman Agnes Thibault-Lecuivre.
"If you got a slave master or Klan in your blood, blacks can sense that. That stuff lingers to this day. Just like Jews can sense Nazi blood and the Serbs can sense Croatian blood," Dylan was quoted In the Rolling Stone magazine article.
Ivan Jurasinovic, a lawyer for the group, said that the Croatian community in France was upset by Dylan's remarks.
The Associated Press reported that France is home to about 30,000 Croatians. The country reportedly has strict laws punishing hate speech and what is deemed racist remarks.
Dylan is "a singer who is liked and respected in Croatia," said Jurasinovic, adding that he does not expect monetary damages from the musician, but "an apology to the Croatian people."
The Balkans war of the 1990s involved Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia, which resulted in numerous deaths on all sides.
Representatives for Dylan, who just wrapped up his European tour last month, said that the Grammy Award winner had no comment on the charges.
In addition to his music, the 72-year-old Dylan has seen success in other art forms in recent years, with painting, sculpting and welding.
