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Brigitte Bardot slams #MeToo 'publicity-seeking' actresses

31 Comments
By Fiachra GIBBONS

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31 Comments
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Romance, as we knew it is totally dead.

not sure if groping, rape and power harassment are romantic or not

9 ( +14 / -5 )

These French women are tough cookies. They're not afraid to speak their minds. This definitely goes against the grain of the feminist agenda.

10 ( +15 / -5 )

It also inferred that women fondled on public transport should just get over it.

I don't believe that was what was written in the letter, but this kind of inference kind of makes these women's point. The translation I read of that portion of the letter was, "She can make sure that her wages are equal to a man’s but not feel forever traumatized by a man who rubs himself against her in the subway, even if that is regarded as an offense. She can even consider this act as the expression of a great sexual deprivation, or even as a non-event."

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Good on ya Brigitte, !

we could all learn much about sexual harrasment from Brigitte, I reccon she must have been "hit on " in her time ..finally someone comes out and talks sense about this issue

Hollywood is full of switch hitters and charletans, do anything to improve their chances ..in film game

Harvey Weiner is just a predator in a power position , and should be bannished , Im not sure about the rest of the people who have been attacked. Next we will hear the pope has been fondling people . anyway Good on ya Brig

2 ( +11 / -9 )

Like we really need the racist and homophobic Bardot to wade in. Despicable person.

-2 ( +11 / -13 )

A supporter of the far-right National Front

Of course this was inserted for anyone that dare challenge the feminist narrative.

A witch-hunt it has become.  Well done Brigit. Beware of victimhood and those that milk it. Its anti productive.

3 ( +13 / -10 )

"I still find it difficult to understand what happened to me," she said. "That uncontrollable time made me very distrustful of the human race."

Perhaps you should have a bit more empathy then, Mme Bardot? Seeing as how you yourself, have been a victim.

-2 ( +9 / -11 )

These French women are tough cookies. They're not afraid to speak their minds. This definitely goes against the grain of the feminist agenda.

Hear, hear! The funny thing is that most/all of them are also 'feminists" but in France and Europe in general feminists come in all sizes, shapes and colors. So I don't think there is such a thing as 'a' feminist agenda over there.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

SpeedToday  08:01 am JST

the feminist agenda.

Ricky KaminskiToday  09:30 am JST

the feminist narrative.

There have been 3 waves of feminism and even now the field is filled with debate and counter-debate. This very article itself tells us about one of the debates happening in the field even as we speak.

Anyone who claims there to be a single feminist agenda might as well be holding up a sign saying, "Allow me to interrupt your expertise with my completely uninformed confidence."

5 ( +8 / -3 )

"I was never the victim of sexual harassment. And I found it charming when men told me that I was beautiful or I had a nice little backside," said the actress, 

Ironically she's demonstrating the point about this argument that so many people, apparently herself included, don't grasp:

No one objects to sexual comments. They simply object to sexual comments they don't want to hear.

This is not a difficult concept, meaning the people who don't understand it choose not to understand it. All you have to do is get to know the person you want to flirt with well enough that you can understand what lines they don't want you to cross. All you have to do is respect them as an individual, not an target that is interchangeable with every other woman in the office. All you have to do is exercise a very small level of empathy.

It says so much that this terrifies so many people on this board.

Burning BushToday  07:37 am JST

Romance, as we knew it is totally dead.

Well, romance as you knew it, anyway. Most of us are perfectly capable of being romantic without being a workplace predator.

7 ( +11 / -4 )

Katsu)  Yes, please school me. Which one of the three narratives is this beauty?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMcjxSThD54

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

This is the beginning of the fourth wave. In this wave, unknown and relative unknowns will claim "He sent negative sexual vibes at me and I felt violated".

It's coming, There's no encroaching on male egos here. This is just the power struggle that has been going on since the first man and woman met. Everybody wants to rule the world.

-4 ( +3 / -7 )

@Katsu, very much agree with what you wrote.

I think Bardot's "I was never the victim of sexual harassment. And I found it charming when men told me that I was beautiful or I had a nice little backside," comment is also symptomatic of a generation of women who thought men objectifying women was pretty normal. Probably also a 'cultural thing'; Bardot worked & lived with men like Delon, Mastroianni, Tognazzi, Montand, Belmondo etc men who were a 'tad' more refined than the Weinstens of this world. So perhaps the men who told BB she had a nice backside did so knowing BB would welcome the compliment (tbh I don't think some random bozo would have made crass remarks to women like Brigitte Bardot or Claudia Cardinale).

Finally, let's not forget she's been living like a virtual hermit for the last 3-4 decades (which may explain why she sounds slightly out of touch and quite naïve/ingenuous).

6 ( +7 / -1 )

I agree.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

People who try to discuss a continuum of offenses are getting attacked.

There is also a lynch mob mentality to some of the accusations and discussions.

I thought Matt Damon's comments were basically OK. He said that a pat on the butt was gross and offensive, but it wasn't the same as rape, and we shouldn't conflate them. He got shot down and made an example of. He later came out with a PR crafted response that would be acceptable to the lynch mob.

Yes, there are a lot of bad people coming to light since Cosby. I am all for ending criminal acts and defending victims, but we shouldn't conflate everything and everyone.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

goldorakToday  11:37 am JST

I think Bardot's "I was never the victim of sexual harassment. And I found it charming when men told me that I was beautiful or I had a nice little backside," comment is also symptomatic of a generation of women who thought men objectifying women was pretty normal.

I think that's probably true.

And the thing is, almost no one in this movement object's to Bardot's desire to be treated like an object. The objection is to the assumption that because Bardot is okay with it, every other person in the work place should be subjected to it.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

no one in this movement object's to Bardot's desire to be treated like an object.

Telling someone they look nice is not objectifying.

1 ( +7 / -6 )

StrangerlandToday  01:30 pm JST

Telling someone they look nice is not objectifying.

Telling someone they have a "nice little backside" is not the same thing as telling someone they look nice.

0 ( +5 / -5 )

Telling someone they look nice is not objectifying.

If you're at your local pub or gokon, sure. But it seem like a facile response given the context of her remarks and the overall movement. Let's say a brilliant woman, a politician, scientist or doctor, is told at work that she looks nice. Let's say your daughter, having completed her presentation at an academic conference is met with garbled bleetings of "kawaii" by an assembly of oyaji. Do you really think that isn't reducing her, her intellect and strivings, her educational or professional achievements down to how she looks? Then imagine the same thing happening to a male peer. Bardot is a dinosaur, a former sex symbol who relished the male glance--it's how she made a living. Most women would prefer you keep your opinions about how she looks to yourself.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

The massive flurry of opinion is burying the main issue. It is abhorrent for any person in a position of power to abuse that power over someone else. Mechanisms must be in place to stop this kind of behaviour.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Telling someone they have a "nice little backside" is not the same thing as telling someone they look nice.

So because the body part is lower on their body than their face, it's not the same thing?

If I compliment someone on looking pretty, or I compliment someone on a nice butt, they are both complimenting a body part.

What exactly is the difference?

-5 ( +3 / -8 )

Let's say your daughter, having completed her presentation at an academic conference is met with garbled bleetings of "kawaii" by an assembly of oyaji. Do you really think that isn't reducing her, her intellect and strivings, her educational or professional achievements down to how she looks?

No. I think it's commenting on her being cute.

If they said nothing about the presentation whatsoever, I think that the lack of a comment, combined with the comments about her being cute, would indicate that they are objectifying her. But if they comment on her being cute, then go on to discuss her presentation, then it simply indicates they thought she was cute.

The point being that calling someone cute is not in and of itself objectifying. It can be used to objectify and/or can indicate objectification, but isn't proof by itself.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

StrangerlandToday  02:16 pm JST

So because the body part is lower on their body than their face, it's not the same thing?

Not at all. This is a serious problem that undermines the economic success of millions of women all around the world.

If I compliment someone on looking pretty, or I compliment someone on a nice butt, they are both complimenting a body part.

Complimenting someone on looking "pretty" isn't even the same thing as saying they look nice.

When you say someone looks nice, you are expressing an opinion about the person as a whole, the genetics they were born with and the choices they made in how they present themselves. In a workplace environment there are plausible scenarios where professional appearances matter and complimenting someone that they look nice can be a part of praising someone for doing a part of their job well. Of course, if the only thing you praise female coworkers for is their looking nice, then that's another issue, but let's set it aside for now.

Telling a coworker that they have a nice butt is objectifying because you are implicitly reducing their appeal to a single part of their body, not even the part that makes decisions apart from when it's poopy time. It mostly comes down to genetics, not the person's choices, and it has nothing to do with professional presentation in most workplaces.

Now when a coworker is okay with you reducing their entire identity to the quality of their butt, if you want to have that conversation with them in your own private time, very, very few people object. The objection is when you take a coworker who wants to be seen for their successes and work in the company, and you disregard all of those qualities to fixate on the shape of their butt.

I mean, seriously, isn't this an embarrassing indictment of our society that this even needs to be spelled out? How would you feel working hard to make a plan to earn money for your company only to be told your boss only keeps you around because they like looking at your butt?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The point being that calling someone cute is not in and of itself objectifying. It can be used to objectify and/or can indicate objectification, but isn't proof by itself.

To which I can only say it's fortunate you live and work in Japan, whose new era name may as well be Yayoi 2.0. You would at least admit that such declarations are almost always made by men, quite often by men in positions of power over women they think must be happy to receive compliments? It's impossible that their silence might reflect discomfort or revulsion, right? Or that most professional women I've encountered, including several bosses in academia over the years, would naturally prefer to be judged on the quality of their work?

I believe you've said you're self-employed. Would you compliment a staffer's looks (or her bottom to use the above example, considering they're equivalent in your opinion)? What proof would she have to present to someone that she's been harassed? Or say you employ three women but only fancy one--would you say how cute she looks on a Monday morning within earshot of the other two? Would this in any way disrupt how your workplace functions, how promotions or salaries are decided?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

This is such an easy problem to solve- all you have to do is listen and exercise the tiniest bit of empathy. Why is that so hard?

I think a lot of it is just common sense.

all you have to do is listen

This is not easy. Listen to whom? The people who take it upon themselves to define what is unacceptable or is that definition left up to individuals?

I’m not trying to be pedantic here. I just think your explanation of how easy it is isn’t as easy as you make it sound. It certainly isn’t clear.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

@katsu78

Say in scenario 2, it was a man giving the presentation and the boss's comment was, "Nice tie!". What would be the man's reaction? I think it would vary, depending on the person. Some might think "ignorant jerk" and ignore it. Others might look for another job. Others might feel it just shows the boss up to be the idiot he or she is and smile to themselves. And some might feel completely demoralized, and suffer various psychological problems.

My understanding of the position taken by Bardot and Deneuve and those who signed that letter is that the #MeToo campaign pushes women to consider only the last of the above reactions as valid. Any sexual harassment causes suffering, and therefore there is a requirement to feel traumatized. Shrugging it off as the action of a "typical male idiot" is not allowed. They are suggesting this makes some women weaker and not stronger.

I'm not sure whether I agree with their position or not. I'm a man, and have not been in the positions that many women find themselves. But I think I can understand their points of view.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

What ever it started out, it has tuned in to a MeToo witch-hunt.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Brigitte is spot on in this case, many Hollywood women have used high powered men to get ahead and now they are coming out of the woodwork as if they are innocent and knew not what they were doing.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

She's been off her chump for years.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

albaleoJan. 18  10:24 pm JST

Say in scenario 2, it was a man giving the presentation and the boss's comment was, "Nice tie!". What would be the man's reaction? I think it would vary, depending on the person. 

That's something people who object to #MeToo have to grapple with, that not everyone thinks the same way or reacts to comments the same way. That's the point of it, really. However, "Nice tie!" is a poor analogue because a tie is not a part of your body. A tie is an object, wearing it is a choice. A boss commenting on your tie instead of the quality of your work will likely come off as derpy, but it's not nearly as objectifying as a comment on a secondary sex characteristic.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

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