Xavier Bertrand, candidate for the primary of the right and president of the Hauts-de-France region, cuts the microphone of an elected ecologist in the middle of the Regional Council. A gesture criticized by other elected officials, and an intervention to underline: that of support from Marine Tondelier.
On September 23, 2021, at the Regional Council of Lille, elected officials debate about an amendment to a law. Marine Tondelier, elected ecologist, begins to speak and asks for actions instead of promises. She didn’t not even time to finish his first sentence when his microphone is muted. Xavier Bertrand seems annoyed by the tone of the elected, accusing her of making ironic value judgments. “If there is a need to calm the spirits I will suspend for 5 minutes, I have no problems”, says Xavier Bertrand, like a teacher wishing to calm a restless class. Except that there are only elected representatives here who are supposed to be equal and all legitimate when it comes to expressing themselves in a democratic time.
However, Xavier Bertrand explains to Marine Tondelier that he “there is no point in making comments that will be badly perceived” and highlights his long experience of “very many assemblies”. The chosen one then has the floor again after this sermon. Then his colleagues speak to discuss the amendment to the subject of the day. It was then that Benjamin Lucas, regional advisor, took the opportunity to quote Xavier Bertrand in these terms: “If we had 5 minutes I could have explained to you what the mansplaning, the ability to interrupt a woman when she is speaking. I find it quite disrespectful of the opposition and of an elected representative in this assembly to interrupt her when she began her remarks. Being the president, being the police of the Assembly does not allow everything, Mr. Bertrand “.
The recurring sexism of French politicians
Xavier Bertrand once again illustrates the sexism that still reigns in political spaces in France. In July 2012, Cécile Duflot, then Minister of Housing, was whistled in the Assembly because of her outfit, a floral dress. Dress then exhibited at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris as part of the exhibition “Correct attire required, when clothing causes a scandal” from December 2016 to April 2017. A relic of a huge scandal, during which a politician had been until yelling at him “Go ahead, take off the buttons”.
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What we can also underline is that Benjamin Lucas breaks through his intervention a form of male connivance. Indeed, often, men who witness a sexist situation do not dare to react, for fear of attracting the wrath of the one who has had an inappropriate comment or gesture but also, out of simple solidarity. However, this lack of reactions allows discrimination to flourish. This hallucinating sequence in all respects therefore ultimately has a great merit: that of highlighting the way that remains to be done and of showing what acts are necessary to break this vicious circle.