First off, I do not watch South Park. Its times like these that I wish I did. In their 200th episode, South Park pictured the Islamic prophet Muhammad in cartoon form, and broadcast it across the entire world.
The problem? Depicting the image of Muhammad is an unthinkable crime in the Islamic world. The blasphemy has historically been answered with death threats, and in some instances, real murder and acts of terror. In 2005, images of the prophet Muhammad were published in a Danish newspaper's editorial column, and in response Muslims all over Europe, the Middle East, and even Africa took up arms against the cartoonists.
"They burned embassies and churches and fought with police; at least 200 died and many more were injured." (NY Times)
In 2008 a bomb exploded outside of the Danish Embassy in Pakistan, killing 8. The attack was claimed by Al Qaeda, who said that it was in response to the cartoons.
Here's a link to the cited NY Times article.
And the carnage doesn't stop there. Public criticism of Islam has been revenged by the harshest of consequences. In 2004 Theo Van Gogh's short film Submission was broadcast on a Danish television network. The film is a commentary on the abuse of women in Islam, an extremely powerful and thought provoking short. I urge you to watch it here. (its only 10 minutes long):
Theo Van Gogh was murdered, shot to death 8 times on his way to work in Amsterdam. His film was seen to be blasphemous and unacceptable, and the artist paid the dearest price.
So where does this leave us? What can we do to support our freedom of speech?
The answer is absolutely not to fall silent. The first thing we can do is to speak our mind. Blaspheme. Think critically about these things. Religions do not inherit the right to abuse members, nor kill opponents. The idea of "relativism," that we have our rights and morals, and they have theirs--its as wrong as they come. I am not a Muslim. I have no inherent respect for Muhammad, nor the sanctity of his image. I see no rational argument for such respect: why should a man who was alive in the 6th and 7th centuries not have his face depicted, under penalty of death? These kinds of issues, religious or otherwise, should not be taboo.
When we give up our ability to question, we give up our ability to progress toward greater understanding and morality. People deserve the respect. People are entitled to opinions and the pursuit of happiness. Ideas are not people, and deserve no innate respect.
Tomorrow, the AAF (Atheist Agnostic Freethinker) club will be chalking up the quad at the University of Illinois with stick figures labeled "Mohammad." I vehemently support this cause, as I support the right of South Park to jest at the expense of a bullshit tradition.
The answer is absolutely not to fall silent. The first thing we can do is to speak our mind. Blaspheme. Think critically about these things. Religions do not inherit the right to abuse members, nor kill opponents. The idea of "relativism," that we have our rights and morals, and they have theirs--its as wrong as they come. I am not a Muslim. I have no inherent respect for Muhammad, nor the sanctity of his image. I see no rational argument for such respect: why should a man who was alive in the 6th and 7th centuries not have his face depicted, under penalty of death? These kinds of issues, religious or otherwise, should not be taboo.
When we give up our ability to question, we give up our ability to progress toward greater understanding and morality. People deserve the respect. People are entitled to opinions and the pursuit of happiness. Ideas are not people, and deserve no innate respect.
Tomorrow, the AAF (Atheist Agnostic Freethinker) club will be chalking up the quad at the University of Illinois with stick figures labeled "Mohammad." I vehemently support this cause, as I support the right of South Park to jest at the expense of a bullshit tradition.
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