More than 200 political activists defied a police ban to demonstrate here last week, scurrying across the Boulevard Saint Germain and under the plane trees of Place Maubert to engage in their forbidden action: eating “pig soup” in public.
With steaming bowls of the fragrant broth soon passing through the crowd, Odile Bonnivard, a secretary turned far-right firebrand, climbed atop a dark sedan with a megaphone in hand and led the crowd in a raucous chant: “We are all pig eaters! We are all pig eaters!”
“Identity soup,” as the broth has come to be called, is one of the stranger manifestations of a grass-roots backlash against the multiculturalism that has spread through Europe over the past 20 years.
Made with smoked bacon, and with pigs’ ears, feet and tails, together with vegetables and sausages, the soup is meant to make a political statement: “Help our own before others.”
The “others,” Bonnivard explained, are non-European immigrants who she and her fellow far-right political activists say are sopping up scarce resources that ought to be used for descendants of the Continent’s original inhabitants. In other words, the soup is meant to exclude those who do not eat pork – for the most part, Muslims and Jews.
“Other communities don’t hesitate to help their own, so why can’t we?” she asked, noting that Europe’s Islamic charities serve halal food to disadvantaged Muslims and its Jewish charities operate kosher soup kitchens.
No comment. Other than religious bans on diet are absurd. Of course.
I think your comment says everything about why we, non-muslims, are doomed for defeat. “Intolerance or tradition”, does that mean we we’re intolerant if we show any symbols on ingrouping similar to what the different colored groups do, or should be stay silent in fear that the muslims will again commint additional violence in order to get their way.
Already, you liberals have rolled over in regards to freedom of the press. You’ll roll over when it comes to resisting Islamic law or symbols like you do Christianity.
If you hate being who you are, you should go to one of these progressive countries and live there under their law and traditions and try to condemn them then, heads will really roll then.
You really do disgust me.
The Flying Spaghetti Monster will smite you for not using salsa pomodoro.
There is a problem about knowledge. Which is why we are protected from Truth. It is difficult to live up to it. Hypocracy was born from people who know something but do not live up to it. I am a hypocrite. Pigs are intelligent creatures– as intelligent as a five-year-old child. We do not eat dogs because we regard them as intelligent, but pigs are smarter. Actually, I have stopped eating pork myself because of this. I used to love pork. But, what use is knowledge if we do not use it. Also, the way factory farming treats animals is abominable. They suffer from birth to death. Eating animals is not wrong, but we should let them live normal lives (with the space and natural diet it was designed for) until they mature. After they reach maturity naturally, then, and only then, is it morally right to kill them.
I’ts both intolerance and tradition. If it feeds a poor french person, fine, when they turned it into a political statement, its wrong.
Real discussions can and need to be had regarding immigration in all western countries, without resorting to attacking the culture of the immigrants.
In my mind, the citizenry of a country have a complete right to decide who to let in and how much spend on them when they get here. As long as it is done democratically and lawfully.
Immigrating to another country should in most cases be considered a priviledge and subject the immigrant to:
*complete compliance with all current laws of their new country
*reasonable conformance and complete acceptance of local customs
*not be an economic burden (in however that country defines it), and have no expectations that the new country “owes” them anything
To me, common sense and courtesy are the answers.
If someone decides not to eat something based on religion or personal concience it’s a personal matter. I wouldn’t want to eat this soup simply because the ingredients sound disgusting!
“No comment. Other than religious bans on diet are absurd. Of course.” – Pardon!? What about if the ban is based on sound reasoning? Is it still absurd?
Paul — that’s a non sequitar. Even if you don’t comprehend the difference between religion and science — or religion and reason — the posted comment doesn’t negate any other system you care to introduce after the fact.
Sheesh.
Certainly there’s a fair amount of research on sound healthy diet available. And a range of opinion and understanding about most of it. None of which has anything to do with religion — or the topic for that matter.
“Meat, it’s what to eat.”
If we were’nt supposed to eat animals, they wouldn’t be made of meat.
Even God likes bacon…
Paul, I offer up articles for discussion. Once they’re in place — with or w/o comment — I generally step aside.
Nice blog, btw. Should I ask if you’re a Saints fan? Since they now appear to be safe from relegation?
Ok, I’m going with Lou’s comment. Several others are good, but I like Lou’s the best.
And I eat Ham, pork chops, bacon, sausage, and cottage roll. I’m not into ham hocks or pigs feet though I hear some people love them just fine.
whats not mentioned in the above article, is that the soup is a very old French peasent brew. It has been served by poorer french farm families and others, mostly in the non-urban setting for a couple hundred years.
And, the only thing I find wrong with Lou’s post is the part about intolerence and tradition. I have to say, that whats wrong with the idea? The group that is doing it is a very nationalistic, right wing group, but the premise that if other groups can have their soup kitchens why can’t the regular french citizen have theirs as well.
And I can imagine that the non-Jewish/Muslim homeless could care less who’s passing out the hot meal.
Wayne
Two suggestions.
1 Imodium.
2 Charmin