the essential
Beans representing the characters from the nativity scene were used for cakes in Toulouse schools. Municipal councilor Rebellious in the opposition, Agathe Roby denounces a departure from secularism. The municipality pleads error and considers the controversy “sterile”.
This is the controversy at the start of the year in Toulouse. The beans used in the pancakes in the canteens of the 211 nursery and primary schools represent the religious characters of the crèche: little Jesus, Joseph, Mary, the shepherd, etc. And this discovery immediately caused a stir on the social network X.
It was the opposition municipal councilor, Agathe Roby (La France Insoumise), who revealed the subject publicly by denouncing a breach of the principle of secularism to which the town hall is bound. “Today the children of Toulouse schools had beans representing a Christian nativity scene in their cake. The Toulouse town hall contravenes the principle of secularism of public schools by acting in this way, it must apologize,” said she posted on the social network this Friday afternoon. A post which, in 24 hours, was read by more than a million people and which sparked an avalanche of comments, often hostile to this position and to LFI.
Today the children of Toulouse schools had beans representing a Christian nativity scene in their cake.
The Town Hall of Toulouse contravenes the principle of secularism of public schools by acting in this way, it must apologize pic.twitter.com/8w1DcSnBOS— Agathe Roby (@RobyAgathe) https://twitter.com/RobyAgathe/status/1877730460505121024?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
“Sterile” controversy
The town hall responded immediately with the voice of Jean-Jacques Bolzan who, on the same social network, pleaded the error. “We changed supplier this year,” explained the elected official in charge of the canteens. “He delivered us the cakes with his beans. We discovered these characters when the cakes were distributed to the children.” The information would be passed on to elected officials through a few school directors.
-The central kitchen has just changed supplier for a fresh, local pancake. It is not possible to change beans when ordering.
Your derisory and narrow controversy only amplifies your silence in the face of the only real threat against secularism today: Islamism https://t.co/5DgNg9qCvD— JJBOLZAN (@JJBolzan) https://twitter.com/JJBolzan/status/1877771708578332799?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Above all, Jean-Jacques Bolzan and Marion Lalane-de-Laubadère, first deputy in charge of education, counterattack by denouncing “a sterile controversy”: “Agathe Roby has variable geometry secularism. She supported the abaya and the proposed law on the repeal of terrorism Aren’t there other more important subjects in Toulouse today?
The controversy arises one year before the municipal elections which should see, among other candidates, Jean-Luc Moudenc, the outgoing mayor, and François Piquemal for LFI.
The Toulouse socialist elected officials, François Briançon and Vincent Gibert, have for the moment stayed away from the bean controversy, worrying, as they have already said in the municipal council, about the level that they judge the debates of this pre-campaign to be “low-level”.
