Finally.
Enough of bending over backwards to be cultural contortionists. Enough of misplaced, colonial guilt and ethno-centrism paranoia. Enough of appeasement in our time.
Nicolas Sarkozy has declared the burqa, the face-covering, body-length Islamic shroud for women, formally unwelcome in France. It is, he underscored, a symbol of subservience and, as such, at odds with French values. He is the French President – not the Burqa King – he, in effect, stated.
He called women wearing such identity-suppressing garb “prisoners behind a screen.” He didn’t have to reference the obvious security ramifications.
Finally, a Western leader not so tethered to the shibboleths of diversity and inclusion that anything — including that which is patently demeaning — is acceptable. Finally, a leader who doesn’t see common sense as incompatible with legitimate issues of cultural sensitivity. Finally, a person of influence who recognizes outrage – even in a cultural guise.
Finally.