It has been some rather strange three weeks in France. Since footballer Nicolas Anelka dedicated a goal to his friend, the controversial French comedian Dieudonné, by doing the comedian's infamous trademark salute, the "quenelle," what some believe is a reverse Nazi salute, during a match for West Bromwich Albion, France has been talking about little else. It is as if the entire public debate has been hijacked by a comedian who, over the last 15 years, has steadily drifted towards more and more extreme behavior and inflammatory speech. Anelka's gesture suddenly shone the light on a phenomenon that had so far been little known outside France. Now, the world knows that there is more to the "quenelle" than the exquisite dish, a creamy mixture of fish and egg, originated from Lyon, France's gastronomic capital.
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The interior ministry adviced to ban a controversial comedian from performing if they deemed public order at risk
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France may not have a First Amendment, but censorship is not considered lightly, Poirier writes
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The government is walking a fine line between censorship and the respect of republican values, she says
There may be an understanding that freedom of speech stops where incitement to hatred begins and the @placeholder, in their majority, think that Dieudonné has gone much too far.