France Adopts Bill to Criminalize Promoting Extreme Thinness
Apr 21st, 2008 • Posted in: NewsFashion industry is not sure how measure will affect it, but adopts voluntary compact to promote healthy body images
PARIS
A bill adopted by France’s National Assembly last week would make it a crime to promote extreme thinness through the media.
The Agence France-Presse reports that the measure is mainly targeted at websites that offer tips for girls to starve themselves into resembling stick-thin models.
But many say there are limits on how far laws can go in regulating health issues.
The measure, which will progress to the French Senate next month, would impose fines of up to $47,000 for publishing prohibited material, with prison sentences of up to three years if a victim dies, reports the U.K. Guardian.
Ultra-thinness has been a major issue in France. Last week, fashion industry leaders and advertisers there signed a separate voluntary agreement to promote healthier body images, according to the Guardian.
The issue has resonated throughout Europe in recent years following anorexia-related deaths of fashion models and the banning of ultra-thin models from Spain’s catwalks.
New York Magazine notes that it still is unclear how the proposed French law would apply to ads, fashion spreads, and runway shows, and the measure does not define “excessive thinness.”
In related fashion-industry news, the BBC last week launched an “ethical fashion” magazine called Thread, which looks at issues facing people who care about the origin of their clothes.
The London Daily Telegraph quotes noted European fashion designer Katherine Hamnett as saying, “Thread is great because ethical fashion promises to be the next big thing and not just a passing fad. Young people are really interested in these issues.”
Thread will cover such topics as the environmental impact of clothing manufacturing, animal rights, and how clothing choices affect the environment.
Sources: AFP, Apr. 19 — Daily Telegraph, Apr. 17 — New York Magazine, Apr. 17 — Guardian, Apr. 16.
For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Feb. 20, 2007 — Related Newsline story, Nov. 20, 2006 — Related Newsline story, Sep. 25, 2005 — Current issue of Thread from the BBC.
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