This Is the Important Reason Women in Sweden Are Wearing Pussy-Bow Blouses

The pussy-bow blouse has become a style charged with feminist symbolism, from its eighties incarnation as a working woman's counterpart for men's traditional shirts and ties to Emma Stone's "Don't Grab My Pussy Bow" take in support of Hillary Clinton following that Trump tape. Now, it's being worn in solidarity in Sweden after Sara Danius, the permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, which awards the Nobel Prize in Literature, was ousted after a #metoo scandal rocked the academy.

It begins with Jean-Claude Arnault, a major cultural figure in Sweden who's married to Swedish Academy member and poet Katarina Frostenson. They ran a cultural club that, according to The New York Times, has been a recipient of academy money in the past. In November, a Swedish newspaper reported that 18 women accused Arnault of sexual assault and harassment over the span of two decades, some instances of which allegedly took place at the club.

Danius, who is the first woman to lead the Swedish Academy, was responsible for figuring out how the organization would respond. She cut all academy ties with him (Frostenson also stepped down from her role in the academy) and hired a law firm to investigate the relationship between the academy and the club. According to The New York Times, "financial irregularities" were found, and the firm recommended the academy file a police report, though ultimately the organization didn't.

All of this somehow lead to Danius' ousting, the ultimate reasons behind which are still unclear (though, as The New York Times notes, two former academy leaders—again, both men—called her leadership weak). Women in Sweden see her ousting as unfair, yet another case of a woman taking the fall for a man's alleged crimes.

After Danius, known for wearing pussy-bow blouses (knytblusar in Swedish) left the academy, her former coworkers and Swedish citizens throughout the country wore their own pussy-bow blouses as a sign of solidarity. They also started posting on social media using the hashtag #knytblusförsara.

One such Instagram came from Alice Bah Kuhnke, Sweden's minister of democracy and culture. “I find it frustrating that such a conflict ends with two women having to step out of the way,” she said in a radio interview. “I can’t accept that.”

Many others—including men—participated:

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