Scandals in Romania and Poland: the disturbing and the exuberant are the norm

Romania holds a sad record in terms of gender-based violence. The event Maria Cernat is talking about in this edition of The Barricade’s Podcast is no different. Just a few days ago Traian Ogâgău, the Mayor of Sângeorz Băi, a small town in Romania, appeared in the local press in a recording of himself disciplining his 14-year-old daughter. The recordings are extremely violent – the girl is forced, naked, to face the wall on her knees with her arms in the air and she has to ask for forgiveness. She has to promise she will never be obnoxious ever again. This very disturbing video was followed by another audio recording where the same mayor could be heard screaming incredible insults at his daughter.
Maria Cernat discusses the reaction of the authorities, the reaction of the public, and the idea of a traditional family. She also discusses this form of violence and the violence of the Romanian politicians – the National Liberals and the Social-Democrats – that forged an alliance and voted on a law a few months ago that would ban all discussion about gender in Romanian educational institutions. Boyan Stanislavski and Maria Cernat analyze the perverse ways in which this so-called protection of the traditional family translates into protection of the abusers from external moral and institutional interference.
The horrific story from Romania is followed by a very interesting and somewhat humorous political development in Poland. Lech Kaczyński, the leader of the Law and Justice Party, pushed a law to ban fur farms. In essence, it would mean that furry animals could no longer be raised for the purpose of making luxury coats out of their fur. This created turmoil in the government since the move to protect these animals and advance animal rights is being interpreted as cultural Marxism! Boyan Stanislavski explains how the law created problems in the government coalition.

Photo: Pixabay, CC0
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