Appropriate action to meet foul action

Full marks to President Hollande, of France, for taking a principled stand. France 24 reports....

"British fashion designer John Galliano has become one of the few recipients of the Légion d’Honneur to have his award effectively retracted, after French President François Hollande signed a decree stripping him of the country’s highest honour.

Galliano was given the award in January, 2009 by former president Nicolas Sarkozy for his contributions to haute couture. Hollande’s decision to strip the designer of his Légion d’Honneur stems from Galliano’s conviction in a French court last year, for making anti-Semitic comments. Caught up in scandal, Galliano watched as he lost his job at Dior and his reputation crumbled. Now, he has also lost the right to wear his Légion d’Honneur medal.

To be stripped of the Légion d’Honneur is no small comeuppance. It is roughly the French equivalent to the United States’ Presidential Medal of Freedom, or a knighthood in Britain.

“It’s a very prestigious decoration that represents extraordinary public service”, Edward Berenson, director of New York University’s Institute of French Studies, told FRANCE 24. “It has often gone to military members and people in the field of science and the arts. It’s been broadened to include more categories over time”.

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Mahler's Prodigal Son

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