The prime minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, had just returned from Ukraine, where she had celebrated Flag Day and pledged to continue supporting that country in its fight against the Russian invasion. At that moment she received an Instagram message from a plastic surgeon offering to “fix” a “small speck” on the politician’s nose.
Frederiksen, 48, shared a screenshot with unsolicited beauty advice on her social networks and explained how she has lost count of “how many messages” she has received “over the years” about her appearance. The Danish prime minister proceeded to detail the criticisms of her physical appearance that have reached her: “Above all that I have ugly teeth and thinning hair. That I have an ugly wart on my nose and well-meaning advice for me to get Botox.”
The politician did not publish the identity of the doctor in question, but did reveal the response to his message: “Oh, no. I am happy with my body; I really don’t need a male plastic surgeon to weigh in on it!”. Frederiksen, a Social Democrat and the second woman to hold the Danish prime minister position, is now in her third term, making her one of the most experienced leaders and the longest-serving in Europe.
Mette Frederiksen and the criticisms of her appearance
In her Instagram post, Frederiksen stressed that she does not meddle in others’ appearance and that she feels “perfectly comfortable” with her body, “as it is when you are a woman approaching 50.” And she added that being a woman in the public eye routinely exposes you to that kind of unwanted and superficial scrutiny.
Mette Frederiksen greets Pedro Sánchez during a NATO meeting.
A continuación escribió, como aviso a navegantes, que «si vas a escribirme (y eres más que bienvenido a hacerlo), espero que dediques tu tiempo a hablar de algo más significativo. No de mi nariz«. La primera ministra escandinava también señaló que esos consejos y sugerencias de belleza no solicitados la hacían sentir ”indignada“ y terminó diciendo que ”hoy envío un recuerdo especialmente cariñoso a todos aquellos que tenéis que soportar las ‘imperfecciones perfectas’ con las que todos convivimos a diario“.
Frederiksen has led the Danish government since 2019 and has led the Danish Social Democratic Party for more than a decade. She has also played a prominent role on the international stage, facing repeated threats by President Donald Trump about a possible annexation of Greenland, a Danish territory. However, none of that has shielded her from criticisms of her appearance.
The politics and controversies over her appearance
In Washington, the Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has often been scrutinized for her wardrobe and her appearance. And in 2018, the Australian journalist Charles Wooley was heavily criticized for calling the New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern “attractive” in an interview described as “sexist and chauvinist.”
“It’s harder for women. There’s a double standard and you can’t complain about it,” former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Glamour magazine in 2016, during her presidential campaign. “You simply have to accept it and be smart enough to navigate around it.”
In Spain, last March the statements of the president of Aragón, Jorge Azcón, were highly controversial when he stated that Minister Pilar Alegría was “physically more attractive” than María Jesús Montero. The then First Deputy Prime Minister of the Government called the words a sexist insult and urged the leaders of the People’s Party to set boundaries. Hours later, Azcón acknowledged the error and apologized.
