PRESS REVIEW – Thursday, February 12: Gisèle Pelicot gives far-reaching interviews in the French press ahead of the release of her upcoming book. Also, Donald Trump's climate and energy policies continue to reject scientific consensus. Finally, we bring you the story of the figure skating coach at the Winter Olympics who's working with 16 athletes from 13 countries.
Gisèle Pelicot opens up to French paper Libération about her life before and after she discovered her (now ex-)husband had been drugging her and inviting strangers to join him in raping her. She describes a trial at which she was repeatedly subject to humiliation, but where, by refusing a closed-door procedure, she made her contribution to the cause of women. She said the idea of the "triviality" of rape was on trial, and of "violence as a weapon of male domination". The Guardian quotes excerpts from her upcoming book, in which she explains why it was so important for the more than 50 men to be tried out in the open, for all the world to see: if not, she said, "not a single woman could walk in and sit in the courtroom and feel less alone". She told Le Figaro that she does not want "victim status" anymore, and that this book is about reclaiming her story, and stepping out of the victimhood box that was assigned to her by these men's crimes.
Meanwhile, the US administration is once again rejecting scientific consensus on climate science, as the EPA is set to appeal the so-called Endangerment Finding: the scientifically proven fact that greenhouse gases "threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations". In doing so, Politico explains, the agency is "revoking its own authority to regulate" planet-warming gases, and "cutting the legs out from under US climate change rules". This comes the same week that President Donald Trump issued an order to the Pentagon to prioritise buying coal power. The Washington Post argues that such an order is tantamount to subsidising the heavily polluting and waning energy source. The US has been successful in shifting away from coal this century, with the fossil fuel going from 50 percent of the national energy mix in 2000 to 17 percent today, but the current administration does not see this as positive. A so-called fact sheet on the White House website calls to strengthen national defence through "America's Beautiful Clean Coal Power Generation Fleet", dismissing the factual scientific consensus that coal is, by definition, a dirty energy source.
In Italy, La Repubblica journalists at the Winter Olympics are reporting on the figure skating coach working with 16 athletes from 13 countries, and the sheer logistical challenge this entails: constantly changing puffer jackets from the stands in order to show support to his contestant and their country. On Wednesday alone, he had a quick change between Georgian and French merchandise, as contestants performed back-to-back. Benoît Richaud is a sought-after French coach and choreographer, with eggs in many baskets and an arsenal of warm winter coats.
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