Difficult NOT to speak about Dominique Strauss-Kahn these days.. Especially living in France..
I will not talk about his innocence, or not, that is up to the court. I will however talk about some interesting “side effects” of this whole affair.
Here in France the interest about what happened between a possible president-to-be and a chambermaid is massive. The sales of magazines and newspapers went up like a rocket in the weeks after DSK was arrested. There were, and still are, TV specials, live feed from the court in the US (even via sms to the TV journalist!) and numerous debate programmes. One point of interest is that this is a man in a powerful position, a world leader, a possible president. The other is that it is rather symbolic; the white, rich man being opposed by a poor, black woman.
Not long after DSK’s arrest, another French politician had to step down due to allegations of sexual harassment – said to be a result of the DSK affair as the women got courage to speak up.
As the story continues, the debates develop. Many questions are raised about unfriendly working environments for women in politics. Interviews are made of leading women who inform that they cannot wear skirts at work due to the comments they get. There are women who have sent written complaints about harassment at work that are never shed light on. Warning signs are coming up about “old school attitudes” that men “seduce”, meaning it is charming and manly to run after female colleagues. And.. questions about journalists not doing their job, because they do not reveal relevant information about powerful men.
Now, that is what I call positive effects of the DSK affair! All these questions and debates are needed. They bring light into rooms that have been in the dark for too long.
The DSK affair is a painful one, for all parties (literally speaking..). It is however bringing some very healthy debates, and I hope these debates materialise into better working environments for women in France. I have a suspicion that many women are used to “the way things are around here”, and that stories like these create an “aha”, “it doesn’t have to be”!
