Last April, Socialist President Conner Rousseau made remarks that caused quite the outcry. “When I walk around Molenbeek, I don’t feel like I’m in Belgium”he had launched in the same magazine Humo.
After these strong statements, the young 30-year-old socialist had drawn the wrath of politicians. Benjamin Dalle (CD&V) called these statements “not only unworthy, but also pertinently incorrect”.
He had also received a lot of criticism within his own ranks. “Very inappropriate remark”, declared in particular Jef Van Damme, alderman of Vooruit in Molenbeek. “He can come down the next time he passes by here. I will be happy to show him around.”
His speech has not changed
Nobody would have been surprised to hear the president of Vooruit, interviewed by Humo on Tuesday, reconsider the declarations of the time. Nay! Conner Rousseau has added a layer, after visiting the town with the alderman.
”I expressed a feeling that many Flemish people share and I proposed a solution: to ensure that everyone speaks our language and that there are more opportunities in education. (…) This visit only reinforced my point.”
The young politician still wishes to explain his remarks, which are in no way, according to him, a personal attack. “I don’t feel at home in Molenbeek, but that was not a personal attack on these people. My message was that we need to improve conditions in these neighborhoods by investing in language, child care and education. I visited a Dutch-speaking school where a teacher told me that they had to look for volunteers to serve as interpreters for contact with parents.”