French Politician Marlene Schiappa Posed For A Playboy Cover & The Reactions Are So Intense
France's PM said it “was not at all appropriate."
French politician Marlene Schiappa is causing quite a stir after posing for the cover photo of Playboy in France, where many are blasting her for the decision.
Schiappa, who has been in government since 2017 and is currently the minister for the social economy, appears on the cover of the French edition of the latest Playboy magazine. She doesn't go nude in the magazine, but other French politicians have still been criticizing her for the move, reported CNN.
Schiappa, 40, will appear on the cover of the magazine for the April edition in France, reported the BBC.
Although Schiappa did her magazine appearance fully clothed and also gave a feature interview on topics like women’s and LGBTQ+ rights, the results have still proven divisive.
Gender equality is a topic that Schiappa has fought for in her campaigns for years, and she was a key figure behind a French law that banned the harassment of women and catcalling, reported The Independent.
Playboy France has not yet released the cover, although others have found the photos and posted them online.
Despite her hard work around women's rights and gender equality, other female politicians in the French government are not so forgiving towards Schiappa.
Most notably, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne has been highly critical of Schiappa and called her feature on the cover of the magazine inappropriate.
Borne said Schiappa’s decision “was not at all appropriate, especially in the current period,” per the BBC.
The "current period" would be a reference to the French government's plan to bump up the retirement age from 62 to 64, in a move that has sparked major protests against French President Emmanuel Macron.
The French Green MP, Sandrine Rousseau echoed Borne’s sentiment and spoke on the matter, saying, "Women's bodies should be able to be exposed anywhere, I don't have a problem with that, but there's a social context.”
Schiappa defended her decision in a tweet.
“Defending the right of women to do waht they want with their bodies, everywhere and all the time,” tweeted Schiappa. “In France, women are free. With all due respect to the backsliders and the hypocrites.”
Although Schiappa has received a lot of backlash from her fellow politicians, she’s seen a fair amount of support from the public.
People have been dropping supportive comments under her more recent Instagram posts, with one user commenting, “Awesome the pics in playboy... The haters are ranting…..”
“But what can it do to you that this woman is in Playboy? I say bravo, the freedom of the woman and her body, bravo,” wrote another commenter under her second most recent Instagram post.
Playboy France editor Jean-Christophe Florentin said Schiappa was the most "Playboy compatible" government minister for the magazine because of her stance on women's rights.
Florentin also defended the magazine to the AFP, saying it's "not a soft porn magazine, but a 300-page quarterly 'mook,'" or a blend of magazine and book.
He says there are "still a few undressed women," but that's not the majority of the publication.
In other words, he's suggesting that are in it for the articles.
The magazine and Schiappa's interview are due out later in April.