France Passes Gay Marriage Bill

World News • April 2013 • Views: 1,212

The French Senate has voted to legalize same-sex marriage in France, putting a landmark bill on track to become law by summer.

The vote in the upper house of parliament — led by President Francois Hollande’s Socialists — comes despite boisterous protests. Opponents — mostly conservatives and fervent Roman Catholics — have sought to defend traditional marriage.

Both houses of parliament will now take up a second reading to consider minor Senate changes to the bill passed in February by the National Assembly, also controlled by a Socialist-led majority.

More: France Passes Gay Marriage Bill

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3 comments

palomino Fri, Apr 12, 2013 10:27:42am

Just one more way that France is more socially progressive than the US.

Americans love to hate the French and we tend to think their country is some sort of dysfunctional hellscape. Well, here are a few things the French have on us:

1) They live longer lives.
2) Lower violent crime rate.
3) Lower rates of drug addiction.
4) They get more vacation time.
5) They work fewer hours, and spend more time with their families.
6) They have more sex. And they get more sleep. Both of which have been proven to be generally healthier practices psychologically and physically.
7) Women have more in the way of reproductive rights.
8) They’re less fat. And have fewer obesity related illnesses.
9) Universal healthcare, which doesn’t suck. See #1 above.
10) And now they’ll have gay marriage before we do.

This isn’t to say America sucks, but that our condescending attitude towards the French is misplaced. Thinking of them as cheese eating pacifist pussies precludes us from learning anything from them with respect to successful social policy.

Flavia Fri, Apr 12, 2013 12:15:26pm

re: #1 palomino

Completely agree with you - but they do have a dysfunctional way of addressing certain problems. I still can’t get over how their response to “Muslims (note the quote marks)” bullying non-Muslims was to “forbid all religious clothing of all students in public schools.” Ok, I am nitpicking. But, to my mind, it showed a really stupid mindset that I can’t get past.

That said, I’m still embarrassed for us.

The Ghost of a Flea Fri, Apr 12, 2013 4:00:47pm

re: #1 palomino

Our stereotyped “criticisms” of France are rooted in a centuries-old tradition of attributing culturally-proscribed gendered qualities to nations, where it’s an insult to be soft and “feminine.” It’s an echo of the structure of Greek and Roman racism, which has be re-performed by nations that have appropriated the imagery and ideas of those ancient nations. US mythology about how the two World Wars is a big part of this, as is our erasure of our dependence on (royal) French resources during the Revolutionary War.

Which is to say, most of what’s said about France in the US doesn’t rise to the level of structured criticism. It’s just using caricature to deny them equal standing or fair consideration.

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