Here are the answers to the match-up activity I proposed in my recent article on International Workers’ Day:
1. La crise, c’est eux; la solution c’est nous! (They are the crisis, we are the solution!)
2. Sarko nous l’a promis, Sarko nous a menti! (Sarkozy promised us, Sarkozy lied to us!)
3. On ne paiera pas pour les banquiers! (We will not pay for the bankers!)
4. Sarko, rappelle-toi de 1789! (Sarkozy, remember 1789!)
5. Liberté, Egalité, Révolte! (Freedom, Equality, Revolt!)
Today is International Workers’ Day in many countries around the world including France. Originally created as an international strikers’ day as part of the labor movement in commemoration of the fight for the eight-hour work day, it is a legal working holiday or day off for most people in the countries that celebrate it. In Paris alone, there were over 65,000 strikers in the streets today according to police. The French labor unions, however, estimate that the figure was around 160,000. These are the highest figures for May 1st demonstrations in recent history. They shouted out against French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s handling of the economic crisis, the crisis itself and management. The path was very long as it stretched all the way from southern Paris at Denfert Rochereau to Bastille. Ségolène Royal, the former candidate for the French Presidency, declared that the 1st of May is the time to “se battre pour que tout le monde ait du travail” (”to fight so that everyone has a job”).
Here are some slogans that were seen today on the signs being carried. See if you can match them up with their English translations.
1. La crise, c’est eux; la solution c’est nous!
2. Sarko nous l’a promis, Sarko nous a menti!
3. On ne paiera pas pour les banquiers!
4. Sarko, rappelle-toi de 1789!
5. Liberté, Egalité, Révolte!
A. Sarkozy, remember 1789!
B. Freedom, Equality, Revolt!
C. They are the crisis, we are the solution!
D. Sarkozy promised us, Sarkozy lied to us!
E. We will not pay for the bankers!
You can see photos of the strikes by clicking here.
Today is the Epiphany (l’Epiphanie). It is a Christian holiday that celebrates the time when the three wise men followed the north star to Bethlehem where they found baby Jesus and gifted him with gold (de l’or), myrrah (de la myrrhe) and incense (de l’encens). One of the traditions in France on this day is to have a galette des rois (wise men cake or 3 Magi bread). The galette dates back to the 14th century and was traditionally divided into enough portions for all the people present plus one more for the first poor person that passed by. Nowadays, the first portion is usually reserved for the youngest person in the family. A white or black bean (fève) is hidden in the cake and the one who finds it is crowned the king and can choose his queen for the day or vice versa. Most homemade cakes have a dry bean hidden inside, but the bakeries now insert plastic ones. In the past, beans made out of porcelain, earthenware and even precious metals have been placed inside the cakes. There is even a museum in Blain, France which showcases all types of these collector’s items. In the south, they often have a couronne en brioche (brioche in the form of a crown) instead.
