L’affaire DSK and the French awakening that ensued

Written by: Katherine Sacks ˑ 

Courtesy of the International Monetary Fund.

In the wake of the arrest of former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn last month for attempted rape, French women are beginning to speak out against the culture of sexism and the tacit acceptance of sexual assault and harassment in French politics.


Strauss-Kahn, 62, was the sitting chief of the International Monetary Fund when he was arrested in New York for the sexual assault of a chambermaid at his Manhattan hotel, although he has since resigned from the organization.
For many women in his home country of France, the arrest signaled an end to the tolerance held by many in the country’s political parties, and the moment appears to have arrived for the revival of a feminist movement, one that challenges the men in leadership positions.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn (L) greets France's Finance Minister Christine Lagarde (R) at the IMF's Headquarters April 22, 2010 in Washington, DC. Courtesy of the IMF. IMF Staff Photo/Stephen Jaffe

Following his New York arrest, an unprecedented event to the French, women have finally gained the courage to come forward about past attacks. Much attention has been paid in particular to a 2002 incident in which Strauss-Kahn allegedly attempted to rape his second wife’s goddaughter, journalist Tristane Banon, under the guise of an interview. Banon’s mother, a socialist politician, convinced her daughter not to press charges, however, understandably fearing that nothing would come of the allegations and that Banon would be branded a liar.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn participates in a Townhall meeting with Civil Society Organizations at the Istanbul Congress Center October 2, 2009 in Istanbul, Turkey. IMF Staff Photo/Thomas Dooley

Banon and other women victimized by powerful politicians such as DSK finally have an opportunity to come forward in a country where powerful men are held to a different standard; these men have for years harassed female politicians and employees with impunity, shrugging their actions off as harmless flirtation inherent in their Gallic behavior.
Women, no matter how far they rise in politics, are still subject to comments and overtures by their colleagues, unsafe in their sexuality. Most Frenchmen, particularly the old guard politicians, do not regard sexual harassment as a problem: ex-president Jacques Chirac led France for twelve years, despite common knowledge of his rampant womanizing.
Comments made in the press have dismissed the incident as less than serious: socialist Jack Lang said publicly that he felt Strauss-Kahn should have been released on bail sooner as “no one had died.” A “blame the victim” mentality still reins, the belief that women who dress a certain way are asking to be raped. Female politicians have reported being afraid to wear skirts for fear that their male colleagues would not take them seriously but see them instead as sex objects.
But France in a post-DSK world might be poised for change. Women previously afraid to come forward have seen a man, ostensibly the next president, facing the consequences of his actions. Feminist groups have taken to the streets to demonstrate their abhorrence of the omertà that prevents accusations against powerful men.
Because the attack occurred in the United States, whose justice system takes sexual offences much more seriously, Strauss-Kahn and his political cronies were unable to cover up the scandal and intimidate the victim. A Guinean immigrant maid with no political power had the strength to say no, to fight back against an influential man, and in so doing she inspired a generation of French women to follow her lead in fighting back against the multitudes of powerful men who have for so long treated women as objects.
About the author: Katherine Sacks is a graduate of Barnard College with a B.A. in political economy and French literature.  This September, she will be taking her talents to London to pursue her MSc in political science and political economy at the London School of Economics.