Tantrums over textbooks: ‘gender theory’ sparks controversy

by KATERINA VITTOZZI

The school year is about to kick off here in France, but even before it starts there’s been a furious response from 80 MPs to a new science textbook. The lawmakers, all from Nicolas Sarkozy’s centre-right UMP party, want the book pulled from the shelves because they say it includes a controversial paragraph about gender theory. We took a look at what’s behind their outrage.