7/25/2019 Satire and Charlie Hebdo
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Charlie Hebdos refugee cartoon isnt
satirical. Its inflammatoryJonathan FreedlandThe French magazine
may have wanted to give prejudice a kicking but ended up giving it
aplatform
So far Charlie ebdo!" defender" have fallen into two
categorie"#! $hotograph% &an 'ang"don()$*
Friday 15 January 2016
&he"itate to critici"e Charlie ebdo# * year and a week ago
it felt all wrong# Then+ after ,, of the Frenchmagazine!" "taff had
been murdered+ the only fitting re"pon"e wa" "ympathy for the
familie" of tho"e "lain+
and clear+ unambiguou" denunciation of the men who had "ought to
"ilence them with bullet"#
-ut if the goal wa" to "tay Charlie!" drawing hand+ the killing"
failed# The magazine continue" to publi"h it"
provocative cover" and cartoon"# Thi" weekit ran a drawing that
included+ fir"t+ a depiction of the
photograph that went around the world la"t "ummer% the drowned
body of the toddler and refugee*lan
.urdi+ face down on the "hore# /0hat would little *lan have
grown up to be12 ran the caption# The an"wer
came below+ illu"trated by an image of two men+ their face"
part3monkey+ part3pig+ arm" out"tretched+
pantingly cha"ing two women% *lan would have become /an a""
groper in 4ermany2#
The cartoon i" certainly "hocking+ u"ing the "ingle mo"t
di"tre""ing image of the refugeecri"i" a dead child
to crack a joke# 5aturally+ it ha" cau"ed outrage and been
widely condemned+ accu"ed of making the raci"t
http://www.theguardian.com/profile/jonathanfreedlandhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/charlie-hebdo-attackhttp://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/jan/14/charlie-hebdo-cartoon-depicting-drowned-child-alan-kurdi-sparks-racism-debatehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/shocking-image-of-drowned-syrian-boy-shows-tragic-plight-of-refugeeshttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/shocking-image-of-drowned-syrian-boy-shows-tragic-plight-of-refugeeshttp://www.theguardian.com/world/charlie-hebdo-attackhttp://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/jan/14/charlie-hebdo-cartoon-depicting-drowned-child-alan-kurdi-sparks-racism-debatehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/shocking-image-of-drowned-syrian-boy-shows-tragic-plight-of-refugeeshttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/shocking-image-of-drowned-syrian-boy-shows-tragic-plight-of-refugeeshttp://www.theguardian.com/profile/jonathanfreedland
7/25/2019 Satire and Charlie Hebdo
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"ugge"tion that all male refugee" from Syria are bound to
be "e6ual predator"+ that even a child a" blamele"" a"
*lan wa" de"tined to become a" bruti"h a" the men who+
en ma""e+ hara""ed and a""aulted women on the "treet"
of Cologne on 5ew 7ear!" )ve#
So far Charlie ebdo!" defender" have fallen into two
categorie"# Some feel able only to make the ba"ic ca"e
that freedom of "peech i" an ab"olute and indivi"ible
right+ which include" the right to produce crude+ cra""
image" that are horribly offen"ive#8artin 9ow"on+ who i"
chair of the -riti"h Cartooni"t"! *""ociation+ believe" the
be"t way to under"tand Charlie ebdo i" to "ee it a" le""
$unch and more :iz+ delighting in it" puerility and
determined to breach the line that conventionally"eparate"
public from private by cracking out loud the kind of "ick joke"
that are u"ually whi"pered in
playground" or pub"# /*nd don!t forget+2 9ow"on add"+ /they!re
French# They think Jerry 'ewi" i" funny#2
There i" another way to defend the cartoon# &t "ay" that
Charlie ebdo!" target wa" not little *lan or
refugee" in general+ but the ficklene"" of the great )uropean
public and pre""+ overflowing with tear" for a
child in *ugu"t+ baring it" teeth in anger at the criminal" of
Cologne in January# &n thi" view+ the French
magazine i" not mocking refugee" but mocking u" for our wildly
o"cillating generali"ation"+ ca"ting tho"e
fleeing Syria a" all "aint" one minute+ all "inner" the ne6t#
That may be a heroic defence+ one that
give" Charlie ebdotoo much credit# -ut let!" "ay that!" what the
arti"t intended# )ven then the cartoon wa"
wrong# For it made a mi"take that countle"" "atiri"t" have made
before% in "eeking to e6po"e a problem+ it
only made it wor"e#
In 2008, the New Yorkerdepicted Barack Obama in
Muslim garb and Michelle withan !ro, an "#$% o&er her
shoulder'$erhap" the cartooni"t wanted to take a "tand again"t
the current
hardening in attitude" to tho"e "eeking refuge# &n fact+ he
"imply
provided another e6ample of that very "hift# i" image take"
it"
place along"ide the ;ani"h deci"ion thi" week+ apparently
echoed
by the Swi""+ toconfi"cate valuable" from new arrival"
everything e6cept their wedding or engagement ring" and
Turkey!" illegal policy of"ending refugee" backto the Syrian
hell
they fled# &t doe"n!t challenge the current mood of fear
and loathing+ it ju"t add" to it#
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/10/after-cologne-attacks-british-politicians-show-share-merkel-valueshttp://www.theguardian.com/profile/martinrowsonhttp://www.theguardian.com/media/charlie-hebdohttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/12/denmark-to-force-refugees-to-give-up-valuables-under-proposed-asylum-lawhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-35135810http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/10/after-cologne-attacks-british-politicians-show-share-merkel-valueshttp://www.theguardian.com/profile/martinrowsonhttp://www.theguardian.com/media/charlie-hebdohttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/12/denmark-to-force-refugees-to-give-up-valuables-under-proposed-asylum-lawhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-35135810
