The politics of FASHION

t was the neckline that sparked nationwide controversy: Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin posed on the cover of wearing a sleek, low-cut black blazer and nothing underneath. The 35-year-old (the world’s youngest serving national leader) was met with the vitriol of trolls, who called her outfit “inappropriate”, “tasteless” and “sleazy”. But the commentary was soon drowned out by Marin’s fierce supporters, who deemed the criticism sexist and used the hashtag #imwithsanna to share selfies in similar plunging pieces. Others pointed to male politicians who dare to bare sans controversy: think former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott in his budgie smugglers, and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who continues to release shirtless photos. ’s editor-in-chief, Mari Karsikas, also weighed in on the debate: “It was hard to interpret the negative comments as anything other than misogyny,” she said. Marin herself plans to shrug off the fuss. As she noted in the magazine article, “[I want to] concentrate on policies, not my appearance.”