Being a journalist is tough.
As if the rising tide of one-sided digital drivel and television malarkey, paired with plummeting advertising revenue and print readership, weren’t enough, journalists also face another more sinister opponent in the form of extremism and the violence it generates.
For those who have never worked in the news business, the newsroom is a place of wonder – an area where all forms of vulgar language and fatuous musings are not only accepted, but appreciated.
The cartoonists and writers at the French weekly “Charlie Hebdo” were in just such an environment when the unthinkable happened – black clad, masked men stormed the building with Kalashnikov rifles and rocket launchers and murdered 12 people, leaving another 11 badly wounded.
Their crime: using satire to bring attention to topics often overlooked or ignored.
One of the publication’s cartoons that raised the most ire was a depiction of the Islamic prophet Muhammad with a bomb hidden in his hat.
To not see the irony and humor in this cartoon one must either be inept or completely humorless.
The point is this: the prophet Muhammad, a man whose teachings strayed not far from those of the Bible, would most certainly not approve of people invoking his name to justify murder – in much the same way that Christ would not approve of the Ku Klux Klan claiming to be a Christian organization.
Obviously, this bit of insightful satire was lost on the lunatics who stormed the offices of “Charlie Hebdo” and several journalists paid the ultimate price as a result.
In reality, this was little more than an attack on free speech, a freedom that we all hold dear and deem necessary for an informed and civil populace.
In the wake of these attacks, it’s more important than ever that we support every person’s right to express themselves freely, whether that expression be offensive, controversial or otherwise. You see, when people are willing to bend to the whims of extremist vampires, by lowering their voices or hiding their dissent, they not only provide the enemy with a victory, but they also undermine the importance of free speech and the freedom of the press. Sometimes it takes a controversial image of a inflammatory editorial to open people’s eyes to the travesties happening all around them.
And while we must wave our banner of freedom as highly and clearly as possible, we must also strive to pinpoint our anger and frustration at those who deserve it.
After these attacks, many people voiced outrage at the wrong targets – some blamed “Charlie Hebdo” for printing tendentious cartoons, while others directed their ire at all Muslims.
Muslims are not to blame for this tragedy, nor are the editors of “Charlie Hebdo,” the blame rests squarely on the heads of those who perpetrated such a hateful and mindless attack on journalists and free speech.
As a journalist and a human being, I mourn the loss of these men and women whose only crime was striving to insight conversation and civil debate.
And in the same vein, I remain hopeful that this tragedy will serve as a reminder that we must never let anyone stifle our right to say what we want in any venue available.
