Playboy magazine controversy: France, which has already been facing a massive protest amid President Emanuel Macron's plans related to retirement age, has again landed in tribulation after its minister posed for the infamous "Playboy" magazine.
Marlene Schiappa, 40, who is a well-known feminist writer as well as Minister for the Social Economy and French Associations, has appeared on the front cover of the "controversial" magazine. She was well-clothed on the magazine cover, and an interview on women's and LGBTQ rights was also published but she has been facing a storm of criticism on social media platforms.
Besides people's backlash, even French Ministers including Prince Minister Elisabeth Borne took to social media platforms and lambasted Schiappa for her pose on Playboy magazine. "It wasn’t appropriate, especially during this period,” BFMTV quoted her as saying.
It is worth mentioning Paris has been facing massive demonstrations due to Macron‘s reforms to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Amid this tough situation, the latest controversy has created a major stir in the political arena.
“Women’s bodies should be able to be exposed anywhere, I don’t have a problem with that, but there’s a social context,” Green MP Sandrine Rousseau told TV channel BFM.
Schiappa fended her "wrongdoings"
Amid the immense criticism, Schiappa fended her "wrongdoings" and argued women have the right to have control of their bodies and called her critics "detractors" and "hypocrites". "Defending the right of women to have control of their bodies, that’s everywhere and all the time. In France, women are free. With all due respect to the detractors and hypocrites," she wrote on Twitter.
Playboy also comes in support of French Minister
Moreover, Playboy has also backed the minister's argument and asserted she has every right to appear on the magazine's front cover as she is associated with the rights of women. Also, it said that Playboy is not a "soft porn" magazine and added it has a reader base of intellectual people.
Notably, the 40-year-old minister and a mother of two, has been a minister in Macron's government since 2017. At first, she was appointed as Gender Equality Minister. During her tenure, she brought in legislation outlawing catcalling and street harassment. Also, she has written several articles about the challenges of motherhood, women’s health and pregnancy.
