Richard Hogan: Sanna Marin has to fight for her right to party
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Picture this for a moment; it’s Friday night, a young woman dances with her friends, they’re having a good time. The working week is over, it's time to let off a little steam. Lost in the dance of revelry, they’re hugging each other, having fun making a little video of the evening. Monday is miles away. I don’t know if they’re "bringing sexy back," I’m no judge of dancing, being white and middle-aged, but as far as I can see, our protagonist can certainly "cut a rug" as my grandmother used to say. Her gyrating is in rhythm with the music. Just young people, letting off a little steam. Nothing out of the ordinary.
The sight of a woman having fun on social media isn’t exactly a new phenomenon. So, why has the world reacted with such hostility to the recently-leaked video of Sanna Marin, the Finnish Prime Minister, dancing with friends?
Okay, so she’s not just any woman dancing with friends, she is in fact, the Prime Minister of Finland. The question that remains is, should someone in her position enjoy a night out with their friends? The preposterousness of this question is not lost on me. After everything we have been through in the last number of years, and what the people of Ukraine are enduring night after night, how can this be something of interest to the world?
Marin came in for such virulent criticism of her night out that she felt compelled to take a drug test to assuage the fears of those that are appalled by the sight of a young woman enjoying herself. The outrage machine, which is always simmering away, went into overdrive. Like a hornet’s nest whacked with a stick, the outrage reverberated around the world.
I can’t remember such outrage when the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, was accused by a 17-year-old Moroccan belly dancer known as Ruby Rubacuori, of giving her €10,000 at the alleged "Bunga Bunga" parties at his residence. The outrage machine wasn’t quite so outraged; more like it raised an eye. No forced drug test. But there is a difference between these two leaders, not only in gender but in class.
Berlusconi is one of the wealthiest men in the world while Marin comes from a far more modest upbringing. Her parents separated when she was young, money was tight while she was raised by her mother in a same-sex relationship. This humble and modern upbringing makes her a target because she refuses to allow herself to be straight-jacketed by conformity.
She set the social media world on fire in April when she turned up to a press conference with her Swedish counterpart wearing a leather jacket. Boris Johnson raised a few heads with his lack of sartorial elegance, but nothing to the level of Marin. The issue of gender has once again raised its ugly head. How we talk about women and reduce them to aesthetics is very much at the core of this discussion.
Any sane scrutiny of the video reveals that it is a couple of friends enjoying a bit of harmless fun. Nothing that any of us haven’t done in the company of people we believe we can trust.
Maybe that is her only crime, trusting celebrities not to share a video of them dancing with the most powerful person in the country. Maybe that is what Marin needs to take away from this episode. Celebrities are a vain bunch, and may not have your best interests at heart.
Marin, until recently was the youngest prime minister in the world, a title now held by Chilean President Gabriel Boric and had come in for criticism previously for partying until 4am. More outrage.
She has been no stranger to controversy. The first images to emerge of Marin as Finland's youngest-ever prime minister went viral in December 2019. She stood smiling next to the other politicians who would be leading her centre-left coalition government. The controversy was sparked by the fact they were all women and most of them were under the age of 34.
The establishment was well and truly rocked. Sexist memes were plentiful, depicting the women making decisions while bathing together in a sauna. Of course, that’s what women do! The media was in a fever trying to paint some sort of feminist revolt, and portraying Finland as a feminism utopia, all the while Marin was at pains to slow the feminism narrative, “there are countries led by men that have also done well, so I don’t think it’s a gender-based issue, I think we should be more focused on what the countries that have done well have learned.” This was a very clear message. It’s not about gender but about doing the job well.
It is obvious that Sanna Marin has knocked the establishment's nose out of joint, with her gender, upbringing and refusal to play "the good girl" for the all-male audience. There are a few takeaways from this experience for Marin, but stopping enjoying yourself on a night out should not be one of them.
