Drawings of the Prophet Muhammad

Jyllands-Posten and the Drawings of the Prophet Muhammad

30 September 2005 would prove to be an important reminder of how strongly art can affect and be affected by history and culture. Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper was the original publisher of the now ever so famous 12 caricatures of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Something so seemingly unimportantly as the drawings had a huge impact around the world. Many Muslim countries experienced demonstrations and violent riots as a result of the publication. To this date, 130 newspapers in 49 countries have chosen to republish the cartoons as an act of sympathy and support of free speech. Was this reasonable use of free speech/press? Or is this a case of hate speech? In this paper I will look into what inspired the newspaper and the artists to create these kinds of cartoons, and what kind of consequences their actions brought about.

After having witnessed how artists in Denmark often were reluctant to produce depictions of Muhammad due to the potential risk they would put themselves in, particularly from extremist Muslims, Flemming Rose, the cultural editor of Jyllands-Posten, commissioned 12 cartoonists to draw cartoons of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in September 2005. The following month several of the artists received death threats and were advised to go into hiding. Ambassadors from ten Muslim countries sent letters to the Danish Prime Minister requesting a meeting. They also called for the Danish government to apologize for the publications. The prime minister declined on the basis that he did not want to violate the freedom of the press. He also reminded the ambassadors that the Danish newspapers are privately owned and not affiliated with the government in any way. Former Danish ambassadors later criticized the prime minister for not agreeing to such a meeting. In December the same year, labor strikes began in Pakistan. When the Norwegian newspaper Magazinet republished the 12 cartoons, 1000 Muslim taxi...