Opinions On The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad Cartoons Controversy - Opinions of Muslims

Opinions of Muslims

Some Muslims were angered by the publication of what they considered offensive images. This anger has been expressed in both violent and peaceful public protests and newspaper articles in Arabic and Islamic countries. Although the artists have denied representing Mohammed as a terrorist, many Muslims felt that "a bomb in a turban, with a lit fuse and the Islamic creed written on the bomb" suggested a connection between Muhammad and terrorism.

Some Muslims, mainly in Europe, have supported the republication of the images so that individual Muslims can make up their own minds and welcomed the debate on the issues that that cartoons have raised.

It has also been pointed out that cartoons in the Arab and Islamic press "demonizing" Jews and Israelis are common.

Louay M. Safi, scholar and Muslim American leaders argued that the cartoons were an exercise in hate, rather than free, speech. Dr. Safi accused Jyllands-Poten editors of hiding behind free speech to promote anti-Muslim feelings and demonize the small but growing Danish Muslim community. He distinguished between free speech that aims at engaging an important issue, and hate speech whose goal is to marginalize and intimidate, and argued that Jyllands-Posten was evidently guilty of the latter.