As the strikes against the pension reform continue this week, a hashtag “Be more French” has emerged across the Channel.
British phlegm was praised. The British now praise the French phlegm in the face of violence. On Twitter, the hashtag #BeMoreFrench (read, “Be more French”) has appeared above some videos from the recent protest-related violence. In Saint-Etienne, for example, we see a full restaurant and customers quietly eating while the street seems to be on fire.
Another video shows a couple seated at a cafe terrace while firecrackers are thrown into a fire lit on the road. Again, the quiet discussion over a glass of wine visibly made Internet users laugh.
Beyond these videos, the hashtag was quickly taken up by the British to praise the fight of the French for their social rights, within the framework of the pension reform. #BeMoreFrench peaked at 35,000 hits on March 25, according to Visibrain.
It must be said that in the United Kingdom, the retirement age is set at 66 and could rise to 67 in 2027. In a country hit hard by political scandals and inflation, France appears to some as a model of resistance.
Even the Conservatives seem to be eyeing France. In a notable column in the conservative newspaper The Telegraphthe editorialist Sam Brodbeck assures that on the question of pensions, “we should all be more French”.
