I’d really like a copy of this issue, but I’m afraid no seller in my area will have it stocked.
A few major cities, specialty stores, and airports may have it, but I live in a relatively small town and doubt I will be able to get my hands on it.
That is, unless someone here can help. I would be grateful to anyone who can buy a copy of this and mail it to me. I can compensate you via PayPal and throw in a nice gift. It would really mean a lot. If anyone here thinks they might be able to get a hold of a copy, please let me know!
That would be great! I don’t think the prices are going to be too inflated. I know in France they go for a few bucks. In the U.S., well, it could be maybe $10? I really have no idea. I also don’t think they will sell out TOO fast… there probably aren’t many people like me trying to track down a copy from a collectible standpoint, but you never know.
Anyways, if you see a copy while you’re out and about, shoot me an email or text me perhaps? I can PM you my information.
Yeah, I think this is the right move. It’s not going overly offensive to prove the point, but still depicts the “taboo,” while showing amazing good character with the part on top.
“I am Charlie,” says Mohammed. “You are forgiven.”
I write for a small university newspaper, and we’ve been shuffling stories around after the news of the first attack in Paris reached us so we can devote some serious space to this. This seems to be something that we will be addressing for several issues.
So I also would be willing to pay for the cost of a copy of Charlie Hebdo, plus shipping and whatever else seems fair to get a copy to the west coast of the US.
I’ve been wondering the same thing. The linked article includes this from the artist, Luz, the creator or the cover art:
The only idea left was to draw Mohammed, I am Charlie. Then I looked at him, he was crying. Then above, I wrote: “All is forgiven”, and then cried. We had the front page, we had finally found this bloody front page. This was our front page.
This was not the front page the world wanted us to draw, it was our front page.
This is not the front page that the terrorists want us to draw, as there are no terrorists in it, just a man who cries: it’s Mohammed. I am sorry that we drew him again, but the Mohammed we drew is a Mohammed who is crying above all."
I suppose the thinking is to show a sympathetic, even empathetic Mohammed who is crying in solidarity with the victims. Okay, I get that. But I still don’t know who is being forgiven or by whom. The terrorists?.. The cartoonists for drawing Mohammed? Is it a message to would-be terrorists that take offense at these images to say that the prophet forgives the infidels for these offenses?
I still don’t know and it doesn’t seem like the creator of the cartoon and the magazine is completely sure either. I think it’s all too fresh and they are still grieving their loss.
I was under the impression it was the surviving writers/cartoonists at Charlie Hebdo forgiving the killers and terrorists. It’s pretty powerful, IMO.
It reminds me of how the Amish community immediately expressed forgiveness to the shooter in the 2006 Amish school shooting.
You’d think a horrible act like that would be enough to push even the most peaceful people to the brink of anger and hatred, but those thoughts can be suppressed. In the end, those negative feelings could lead to retaliation and even more violence.
Now that you’ve pointed it out, I can’t not see the two hidden dicks. Is this typical of their artistic style, or is the sentiment perhaps not quite as noble as it appears on first glance?
Couldn’t say - I’m already on the “‘satire’ doesn’t serve as a blanket excuse for racist depictions” side of the fence, and I’m not a regular reader, so someone else would have to say.
This is typical of Luz’ style. Like many cartoons published in CH it’s intentionally left ambiguous. There are two possible interpretations.
The less charitable one is that it’s a big fuck you. All is forgiven. Everyone is so sorry my friends got killed. I’m sorry I made those offensive drawings. Here, I made another one.
If you listen to the press conference given by Luz, he talks about Muhammad, the character. Not the religious figure or the historical person, but the cartoon character, like, say, Charlie Brown. It’s his character, and it’s the character that got them in trouble in the first place. All is forgiven. I’m not angry at this character anymore. That’s the more charitable interpretation.
The meaning is vague, but the one thing you shouldn’t do is take it as some sort of first-degree, well-meaning slogan.
Pope Francis expressed a similar sentiment the other day. That “Freedom of Expression” doesn’t justify insulting someone’s religion. He has a good point. It’s one thing if you inadvertently insult someone. It quite another thing to deliberately be an asshole. Not that just being offensive justifies murder, but let’s not pretend the Charlie Hebdo people were some sort of gallant heroes.
Oh, you misunderstand me - I have nothing against insulting religion or being an asshole to those who deserve it. But racism of the CH variety is punching down, there’s nothing progressive about it. Like I’ve said elsewhere - if it wasn’t cool when Nazis were doing it to Jews, it doesn’t suddenly become cool because liberals are doing it to extremists.
