A trend on social media in which women share videos of themselves dancing with the hashtag #SolidaritywithSanna is gaining traction in response to the backlash faced by Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin after videos were leaked of her dancing.
The movement started in Finland and later spread to Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Women (men are joining in too) are sharing videos of themselves dancing on social media to show their support for Marin, often adding messages including "everyone should dance more," with the message that the Finnish PM should be able to enjoy her private life.
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The staff of the Danish women's magazine Alt for Damerne were among the first to jump on the bandwagon and shared a compilation of its female employees dancing at various locations.
"In solidarity with Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin (if the party video has been leaked, then certain types are now questioning what you can allow yourself to do as prime minister) we at the editorial office emptied our camera rolls for clips that should never have seen the light of day," the caption shared with the video read.
"And no, you won't be a worse prime minister, director, school teacher... insert your own job.. for firing it up on the dance floor this weekend."
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Stephanie D'Hose, a Belgian politician who has been President of the Senate since October 2020, also shared a video in solidarity with Marin on Twitter this weekend.
"Prime ministers and presidents should party more often, then there might be fewer problems in the world. It is a bit pathetic (but unfortunately not a surprise) how much sexism from extreme right-wing circles is thrown at the Finnish Prime Minister. Rock on," she wrote.
Work of 'trolls'
According to Finnish political commentator, Janne Korkohen, rumours that participants in the video were on drugs were spread on a known neo-nazi Finnish equivalent of 4chan – an anonymous message board known as a "hotbed of misogynism and far-right trolling."
"Their evidence: they thought someone on the video talked about ‘flour gang’, which these trolls interpreted to mean drugs," he wrote on Twitter.
He added that aside from the audio quality being very poor, making it hard to make out what is being said, "police officers, crime reporters with more than 20 years of experience, and researchers who have actually studied Finnish drug culture all say that the word for 'flour' (jauho) isn't used to refer to drugs."
In response to the backlash, Marin (aged 36) said at a press conference last week that she had undergone a drug test, the result of which be published this week.
