French PM On Naked Breasts Versus Burkas...
Rational Nation U S A Purveyor of Truth People look at Eugène Delacroix’s 1830 painting Liberty Leading the People, which Manuel Valls appeared to be referencing. Photograph: Alamy The French prime minister has drawn criticism for suggesting that naked breasts are more representative of France than a headscarf, in the latest flare-up of the bitter political row over the burkini. Manuel Valls, who clashed with France’s education minister over his support for mayors who have banned full-body swimsuits from beaches , gave a rousing speech on Monday night in which he hailed the bare breasts of Marianne , a national symbol of the French Republic. “Marianne has a naked breast because she is feeding the people! She is not veiled, because she is free! That is the republic!” he thundered at a government rally. The inference that bare breasts were a symbol of France while the Muslim headscarf was problematic sparked scorn from politicians and derision from historians and feminist...