Editor,
Where does good-natured humor leave off and barbed insult begin?
Once more we have killings by Muslims, this time in France. This was at the offices of magazine Charlie Hebdo. It turns out the shooters were offended by all that satire, caricature and lampooning of Islam and its prophet.
The magazine also does the same to other religions. But right here in our own country, do we allow any equivalent that regularly pokes fun at Christianity and Judaism?
Charlie Hebdo has had a cartoon showing the Pope wearing a condom. Would any editor in the staunchly Catholic state of New Mexico ever dare to publish this cartoon, or satirize or caricature or lampoon anything Catholic?
Charlie Hebdo once had a cover showing an Orthodox Jew with a kiss for a Nazi soldier. Don’t dare try even a peep of such “humor” in our country; the Jewish Anti-Defamation League will be on your case before you can say “it was just a joke.”
Hence, there is an unspoken blanket of self-censorship across our land.
So, as Americans, let us at least not react to the terror attacks by boasting arrogantly about our freedom of speech and saying to protesting Muslims, “Lighten up. It’s harmless comedy.” Our hypocrisy is showing.
Arun Anand Ahuja
UNM student
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
