{"id":18419,"date":"2014-04-07T05:45:22","date_gmt":"2014-04-07T09:45:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?p=18419"},"modified":"2014-04-06T15:23:41","modified_gmt":"2014-04-06T19:23:41","slug":"social-conservatives-rising-in-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2014\/04\/social-conservatives-rising-in-france\/","title":{"rendered":"Social conservatives rising in France"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

There is talk of a \u201cFrench tea party,\u201d as citizens alarmed at abortion, gay marriage, and other social issues are mobilizing politically and taking to the streets.\u00a0 Something similar is happening in other European countries.\u00a0 The movement is one of\u00a0 social conservatism, not necessarily other kinds of conservatism, with the protesters often being fine with big government and controlled economics.\u00a0 But still. . . <\/p>\n

From Social conservatives are mobilizing in France, leading to talk of a tea party \u2013 The Washington Post<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Steeped in conservative rage and tasting of grass roots, a political backlash has traditional politicians and the news media asking the once-unthinkable: Is le tea party brewing in France?<\/p>\n

\n

If it were, it would be populated by the likes of Catherine Mas-Mezeran, a Parisian mother of three who wrinkles her nose at the mention of President Fran\u00e7ois Hollande. She calls him \u201cthe Socialist,\u201d which, technically, he is. But if President Obama had the birthers, Hollande now has the baptismists.<\/p>\n

French President Francois Hollande has made Interior Minister Manuel Valls his new prime minister, replacing Jean-Marc Ayrault, who, with other ministers, took the blame for the Socialists\u2019 defeat in local elections.<\/p>\n

French President Francois Hollande has made Interior Minister Manuel Valls his new prime minister, replacing Jean-Marc Ayrault, who, with other ministers, took the blame for the Socialists\u2019 defeat in local elections.<\/p>\n

Like others in a growing movement here, she firmly believes an unsubstantiated rumor emanating from conservative circles that Hollande may have secretly renounced his Christianity. \u201cHe has rejected his baptism,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is really shocking.\u201d<\/p>\n

An Elysee Palace spokesman responded, \u201cThis rumor is as ridiculous as it is unfounded.\u201d<\/p>\n

The movement\u2019s strength in numbers, however, cannot be ignored. Initially a reaction to a same-sex marriage law passed last year, the movement has morphed into the most sustained mobilization of social conservatives here in more than a generation. . . .<\/p>\n

A show of strength on French streets in February led Hollande to backtrack on a measure that opponents feared could have helped same-sex couples have children through in vitro fertilization and surrogacy.<\/p>\n

Scores of social conservatives took their children out of public schools for one day in January to protest new lessons being tested in some French schools aimed at dispelling gender stereotypes. The social conservatives said the lessons could lead to boys wearing dresses and girls playing mechanic, or even masturbation classes for children.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are witnessing the rise of a tea party of the French,\u201d Valls warned in the newspaper Journal du Dimanche.<\/p>\n

A continent already hit by economic upheaval is confronting a wave of bitter societal polarization over a host of issues such as euthanasia, abortion and same-sex marriage.<\/p>\n

In Spain, the conservative government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is seeking to push through legislation that would greatly limit abortion rights<\/a>, unleashing a bitter confrontation with the left and reversing the steady march of liberal social policies there since the death of Gen. Francisco Franco. In Poland, a measure that would grant same-sex civil partnerships failed last year because of major opposition, prompting Prime Minister Donald Tusk to say he saw no chances of such unions passing within the next 10 to 15 years.<\/p>\n

During Germany\u2019s national election campaign last year,
\ncenter-right Chancellor Angela Merkel sparked outrage among progressives after expressing doubts about full adoption rights for same-sex couples. \u201cTo be completely honest with you, I\u2019m having difficulty with full equality,\u201d she told public TV.<\/p>\n

Although dubbed the \u201ctea party, \u00e0 la Fran\u00e7aise\u201d by some, the mobilizations here are in many respects still oceans apart from the conservative crusade that upended American politics following Obama\u2019s election. There also is no primary system in France to give social conservatives a decisive political voice. In addition, the conservative revolution here is far more social than fiscal. While some are indeed railing against high taxes and public waste, big government is still generally considered good government in France, no matter your spot on the political spectrum. . . .<\/p>\n

\u201cThe left and right in France have become the same thing,\u201d [a populist candidate] said. \u201cAnd traditional politicians will suffer.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote><\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is talk of a \u201cFrench tea party,\u201d as citizens alarmed at abortion, gay marriage, and other social issues are mobilizing politically and taking to the streets.\u00a0 Something similar is happening in other European countries.\u00a0 The movement is one of\u00a0 social conservatism, not necessarily other kinds of conservatism, with the protesters often being fine with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,27,36],"tags":[780,861,2678,2157],"class_list":["post-18419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-international","category-life-issues","category-politics","tag-europe","tag-france","tag-social-conservatism","tag-tea-parties"],"yoast_head":"\nSocial conservatives rising in France<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There is talk of a "French tea party," as citizens 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