French at Pitt not offended by renaming

France vocally disapproves of a U.S.-led war in Iraq. So American menus take away French wine… France vocally disapproves of a U.S.-led war in Iraq. So American menus take away French wine and change names of certain items to “freedom fries” and “freedom toast.” Even the cafeterias on Capitol Hill get in on the culinary patriotism, thumbing a collective nose at the “unsupportive” ally.

But according to two French students and a professor at Pitt, the name changes have not soured their opinions of Americans.

“I like this country, and I like Americans. They are nice,” said Paul-Antoine Martin, a French exchange student studying at Pitt, taking the current situation with a grain of salt. He holds that the rising wave of tension between the two countries has not changed his opinion of either.

“We still have pride wherever we go,” he added.

Camille D’ollone, who accompanied Martin from Paris for the semester, agreed. “It’s kind of a childish reaction, but I think it will pass,” she said, referring to the renaming of the food.

“The French cannot be summarized by french fries,” she added.

Both students offer simple yet astute observations regarding the current cross-continental conflict between the Yanks and the Franks: the French oppose U.S. policies during war, not the American people.

And frankly, they say, boycotting French products is a fairly harmless and ineffective way of getting the American way across.

Xavier Bougarel, visiting professor of political science, shares their opinion.

“On a personal level, I think it’s funny,” he said. “I don’t feel endangered or humiliated by it.”

But he is less amused with the possible long-term repercussions on the current relations between the two countries.

“America and France are two countries whose national identity is defined by proclaiming universal values,” he said. He feels the root of the problem lies in the fact that both countries are, whether they realize it or not, competing for the status as the best global representative of democracy and freedom.

While he says he doesn’t harbor any extreme dislike for Americans or America, he does believe he came to the states “at the wrong time.”

The opinions of American students vary from one political affiliation to the other. But few believe the name-changing of food will leave a bad taste in anybody’s mouth.

While sophomore Sam Friedman says he feels apathy towards the French government in regards to their stance on the American-led war, he doubts that the circumstances will cause any real damage to the trans-Atlantic relationship.

“It isn’t done in full seriousness,” he said.

“They have every right to feel the way they feel [about the war],” countered freshman Josh Rubin. But he too agreed that changing names wouldn’t cause political uproar.

Professor Bougarel has put his own comic twist on the kitchen controversy to make it more palatable. He says that he considers it a compliment that the word “French” has been so willfully exchanged for the word “freedom” on menus across the country.

“But it’s just a joke,” he said.