“Caretaker” Youth and Sports Minister Faisal Karami thinks it’s more damaging to Lebanon’s reputation that one of our best athletes, Jackie Chamoun, participated in a photoshoot where she showed as much skin – less, actually – as what we find in every lingerie shop and in every night club rather than his own refusal to sign a law protecting women from domestic violence?
It was this very man who, two years ago, called the draft law written by activists designed to protect women from domestic violence a “blow to family values” because apparently his conception of family is the same as our conception of rape, torture and murder. Roula Yaacoub is fucking dead. Manal Assi is fucking dead. But a woman athlete showing some skin last year is what moves our minister to demand an “investigation”.
Jackie is Lebanon’s Alpine Skier for this year’s winter Olympics in Sochi. She also happens to be beautiful. And to be both attractive and talented is something that our political (and religious conservative) misogynists can’t really understand. As can be testified by the thousands of messages of support she’s gotten on her page in just a few hours, we are all with her and we support her.
Good luck Jackie.
Ps: Jackie wrote that the photos we see are part of the making of and were not supposed to be online. Wanting to respect her wishes, I have therefore not published them here. But as they have now gone viral, I just linked to the original Swiss website.
Hummus For Thought 
Reblogged this on Ned Hamson Second Line View of the News.
Jackie doesn’t need defense. The stupid minister and media do.
When Lebanon itself posted an ad in Playboy sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism in the past, no one in a place to criticize Ms. Chamoun! http://beirutntsc.blogspot.com/2014/02/jackie-chamoun-georgina-rizk-and.html
Whether we like it or not, this was not art.. Nudity is pornographic when it does not serve a purpose.. What disappointed me was her lack of shame.. There was no innocence nor was there art.. This is a personal opinion, and since her photos are public we have the right to criticize.
And we have a right to denounce you as bigoted and narrow minded. The woman did the same kind of calendar shoot that 99% of athletes do, and showing less skin than you would see at any beach (or walking down Gemmayze, in some cases.)
It also in no way impacts her viability as an Olympian, and certainly does not warrant an impeachment from our proud pieces of scum.
Thank you, Elie!! you covered all aspects of this stupid media frenzy over some pix of a woman dressed like many others do in lebanon. Whether it is a triangle bikini top of your hands that cover your nipples, what is the difference. pff!! Finally, if you think it was not art, then don’t look at the pictures and just move on to the next thing that you are more interested in. Finally, having an opinion about something is one thing and is your right. Questioning the talent and competence of a person over a half nude picture and having an investigation over it is another!
its more idio…. to see such a moro…comment, in your opinion people in Beirut and Gemmayze walk with there undies, idio.. like you my friend brought this country into great shame, she is a huge disrespect to the face of Lebanon, so now shut your …… cause people like you and Jackie and her friend shoved the face of Lebanon in the dirt, and stop giving her status.
As for aurora i guess she missed on the video, dear go watch it and will see if you dare even walk the beach dressed as such and as much, so please your silence is more heard than such moro…. comment starting with thanking that……… with that much morons giving such opinions i guess the server is jammed and cant take another moron commenting like you …..
Geraldo, first off i don’t see the purpose in talking with this much disrespect to other. Each one of us is entitled to have his own opinion. However, if you think this girl is a shame to the face of Lebanon i have to oppose and tell you you are a great shame to our country if you can’t respect her. What she did is first of all an artistic act, and she’s the only one who can decide if she wants to expose herself or not. If you think she’s a shame for doing so, what would you say about these “artists” and “performers” that are representing you in the country?
youmna such a beautiful name for a …. you must be an artist wink wink and you like to admire nudity as an artistic form so to make us believe you…….., ignorance is a bliss for you dear so keep as you are, your mentality is one of the reasons why this country steeped to such degrading levels, anyway if you read before i said its her body to do what ever she wants with it but that doesn’t give her the right to represent me in any event, i know from were you come from dear youmna you people who treat nudity acts and scenes as artistic then shame on you to come and blabber to me with your ignorance and lewdness, i feel ashamed even to reply to such obscenity but i had to put you in your place, shame on you.
Well said Elie!
People stop being so ignorant and get yourself out of the bubble society has you living in 🙂
We are not living in a bubble.. Apparently you guys believe that it’s cool to show boobs, and it’s cool to talk about freedom and you like sounding literate by discussing freedom of expression when in reality you are the same idiots that attack myriam klink (another idiot) that at least kep her bra but wasn’t smart enough to defend herself with an actual talent.. Jackie is talented, and she has one hell if a body, but no it’s not okay to start making nudity seem fine in Lebanon.. That’s why I don’t want my daughter to grow in this schizophrenic society..
When did I attack Myriam Klink. You kept on repeating “You” without really saying who “You” is.
Forgive me for ignoring the rest of your comment as it has nothing to do with discussing something and has everything to do with simply making accusations.
Shereeen i admire your thought for your reason and objectivity, not like that bubble girl who holds much ignorance and cant tolerate the fact of living in Lebanon and of-course having much daddy issues and thinks nudity is her ladder to heaven, dear no one is stopping you, your life and body is your own and when your body represents Lebanon then it becomes every Lebanese problem, wake up we are not in USA or Europe, if you want to pop up the bubble pop it in the face of the politicians who had us still in the 18 century and still people follow them like imbeciles, if you want change start with a positive cultural, economic change to pursue the countries that we are only trying to imitate but of-course in our open way about nudity, for gods sake you Lebanese imbeciles wake up and look around and invest your time brain storming to bring forward a better Lebanon for a better tomorrow.
As for HUMMUS read first before giving retarded comments.
As for Elie if it was your sister posing will you still have those thumbs up or you will start talking about Miss Bubble……just wasted 2 minutes of my life replying to imbec…. but please excuse my French
Name the retarded comment, I beg you.
The “bubble girl” here, Jean people in Lebanon are living in a box it would be nice to step out of that box and worry about bigger situations like: Domestic violence, corrupt politicians, having so much hate against your own people that everyone is throwing bombs from left to right on the streets and causing caos rather than shifting your focus from important things in lebanon like fixing the country… your paying attention to things that aren’t harmful in anyway to your country but gave the rest of the world an eye opening to the stereotypical lebanon that everyone knows about!
Is it me or people are really being retarded and think we are living in another country! Since when is nudity or in this case artistic nudity not okay?