Élisabeth Borne would have done well without such a sequence in a hot French political context between the war in the Middle East and the immigration bill. The Prime Minister visited the Claude-Debussy college in Paris on Thursday with Brigitte Macron, the wife of the President of the Republic, and Gabriel Attal, the Minister of National Education, in the context of the national day against school bullying. The tenant of Matignon was criticized after BFMTV published an excerpt on social networks of a conversation with a young student who was being bullied.
"I'm really sorry to ask that question," the boy begins. In primary school, I was bullied and I asked the teacher if I could talk to my mother and the teacher told me no," the young Parisian student wonders. He added, just before Brigitte Macron turned around: "It's really shocking for me." He concluded: "I don't want to create problems (...) I just wanted to talk about it if it was normal or not. »
The head of government then picks up the young man's microphone and responds to him. "So it shows that it's important to train everyone," she said with a smile in front of an audience of national education staff in the classroom, eliciting a few laughs. On social media, the Prime Minister's lack of empathy is highlighted by some. Criticism has also sometimes become more political. "When propaganda goes off the rails, it results in this terrible sequence where Brigitte Macron turns her back on a victim of harassment and Borne ends up laughing. The order of mistreatment is fuelled by contempt," says Alexis Poulin, a regular columnist on Sud Radio.
When propaganda goes off the rails, it results in this terrible sequence where Brigitte Macron turns her back on a victim of harassment and Borne ends up laughing.
The order of mistreatment is fueled by contempt. https://t.co/70ynSJ2B3d
— Alexis Poulin (@Poulin2012) November 9, 2023
"There is no humanity, no understanding in the face of this little one who courageously confides in us about his bullying at school. Mrs. Macron who turns his back when he exposes the bankruptcy of the system, Borne's little joke devoid of any empathy, what a shame! " criticises another social media columnist, Malek Delegate.
No humanity, no understanding in the face of this little one who courageously confides in us about his bullying at school. Mrs. Macron who turns his back when he exposes the bankruptcy of the system, Borne's little joke devoid of any empathy, what a shame! https://t.co/z33OGI7W1h
— Malek Delegate (@MalekDelegue) November 9, 2023
As of Friday morning, the video has been viewed nearly 8.9 million times on X, formerly Twitter, cited more than 2000,1 times and commented on nearly 000,<> times.
Faced with the controversy, Matignon quickly tried to extinguish the fire of a sequence that nevertheless seemed innocuous. The Prime Minister's office denounced a "bad trial of intent". "She listened to him until the end. It was such a powerful testimony that there was embarrassment. Everyone was taken aback. There was no desire to sweep away this testimony," Matignon told BFMTV. . "On the contrary, the prime minister then spoke about it again in private, (editor's note: with the boy), still shocked by what this child had said about her teacher's reaction," the prime minister's communications service said.
"Adults need to listen, act, not minimize"
During this visit, Élisabeth Borne had indeed hammered home the government's discourse on school bullying. "Let's not minimize what children are going through," said Élisabeth Borne, also calling for a "wake-up call" against bullying, launching a new national campaign aimed at raising awareness among adults to better hear the voices of victims.
Read alsoAnti-bullying school plan: "empathy" courses, social networks... Key takeaways from the government's announcements
"We really need a collective jolt on this issue. As we can see, there are still too many adults who are not aware of the extent and impact of bullying on our young people. We often hear it's bickering between children, it's the age that wants it, it's going to pass," the Prime Minister stressed. "Adults need to 'listen, act, not minimize'" bullying, while for young people, "it's dare to speak up," she added. Last year, the campaign was aimed more at students with this question: "What if the other person is you?"
If young people "speak, it's because there's bound to be something. We have to dig deeper and know what's behind it," added Brigitte Macron. At the end of September, the Prime Minister unveiled an inter-ministerial plan against harassment, promising a "general mobilisation", with a single telephone number, 3018.