# The mother of Jihad goes on trial in France **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 23, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768 "2013-03-23T21:25:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/1 "2013-03-23T21:25:17Z")
I ran across a strange [story](http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/french-mother-on-trial-for-son-jihads-t-shirt/2013/03/22/dd5c2016-8eef-11e2-bdea-e32ad90da239_story.html) in the news today. A French woman of Moroccan origin had a child 3 years ago, on September 11, and named him Jihad. Last fall, she sent Jihad to school wearing a shirt that said “I Am A Bomb” on the front, and “Jihad Born Sept. 11” on the back. School officials freaked out (some things are universal), and sent the little boy home. The mother apologized for causing concern, said she meant nothing provocative, and agreed to retire the shirt. She said that the shirt was a gift from her brother, who thought it meant something like “I am a real looker,” and who added the boy’s name and birthday. The principal nonetheless called the local prosecutor, who questioned the woman and her brother about their political leanings and whether she had induced labor deliberately for the purpose of having her son on September 11. Prosecutors declined to bring a terrorism indictment, but they charged the two adults with “apology for crime.” Trial was just completed, and the case is under advisement with the court; apparently the defendants face a fine, but no jail time. Admittedly, I don’t fully understand what the charge means, but I’m having a hard time seeing how it’s justified. I’m not in a position to have an opinion on the mother’s claim of, well, naivete. I don’t know whether a person in France would naturally put together “Jihad,” “9-11,” and “Bomb” to think of the WTC attacks in the way that an American likely would. But even if this were a deliberate provocation, it’s still just a t-shirt on a 3-year-old, after all. I don’t see why it rises to the level of criminal prosecution. Would anyone like to defend this prosecution, as it were? P.S. The linked picture shows the cool outfits French lawyers have to / get to wear to court. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/2 "2013-03-23T21:49:34Z")
I guess she better warn them before her other kids show up–Holy War, Armageddon and Snowpocalypse (he’s adopted). ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@Mighty\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Girl)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/3 "2013-03-24T00:24:32Z")
I can’t believe they allowed her to name the kid Jihad! ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/4 "2013-03-24T00:49:15Z")
> [@Mighty\_Girl](#): > > I can’t believe they allowed her to name the kid Jihad! Jihad isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In most interpretations, it refers to an internal “struggle” to become a better person. ---
**Author:** ![Beastly\_Rotter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@Beastly\_Rotter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beastly_Rotter)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/5 "2013-03-24T02:37:22Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > Jihad isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In most interpretations, it refers to an internal “struggle” to become a better person. And I’m going to call my new band The Holocaust because it really means “burnt sacrificial offering to God”. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/6 "2013-03-24T03:47:28Z")
Jihad is actually a fairly common name in Arabic-speaking countries. I knew a couple guys by that name when I lived in Lebanon. ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/7 "2013-03-24T04:43:35Z")
> [@Tom\_Scud](#): > > Jihad is actually a fairly common name in Arabic-speaking countries. I knew a couple guys by that name when I lived in Lebanon. I came in to say just this, I have a (grown up) friend born in Lebanon named Jihad. He tells me it means ‘struggle’ and that Arabic names are often (but not always) taken from concepts and aspirations, like early American names were and still are. (Faith, Hope, Charity, Patience, All-For-Jesus, stuff like that.) The name itself isn’t really odd at all. ---
**Author:** ![Lochdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/edb3f5/32.png) [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/8 "2013-03-24T04:48:37Z")
Yet that’s not the context in which the name is being used here. ---
**Author:** ![April\_R](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@April\_R](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/April_R)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/9 "2013-03-24T04:49:26Z")
Looks like an unfortunate combo of name, birth date, and engrish ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/10 "2013-03-24T04:52:49Z")
> [@Lochdale](#): > > Yet that’s not the context in which the name is being used here. In terms of the shirt, no. I have no opinion on why anybody thought it was a good idea, but apparently the court thinks it’s merely a charge that merits a fine only. In terms of the kid’s actual name, I don’t think there is a context. ETA: Read the full charge - apology FOR CRIME. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/11 "2013-03-24T05:40:42Z")
> [@April\_R](#): > > Looks like an unfortunate combo of name, birth date, and engrish right. It’s not like muslims, you know, actually celebrated the bombings on 11 Sept 2001. naw, never… :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/12 "2013-03-24T07:40:38Z")
> [@Lochdale](#): > > Yet that’s not the context in which the name is being used here. Well, that’s part of the question. Was the name meant to specifically invoke the WTC attack or is it just a coincidence? Plenty of Arabic families name their kids Jyhad, and by chance some of them are going to be born on September 11th. The connection between the word and the terrorist attacks isn’t as strong in Arabic speaking countries as it is in the US. > [@Beastly Rotter](#): > > And I’m going to call my new band The Holocaust because it really means “burnt sacrificial offering to God”. Or calling your superhero “The Caped Crusader” and pretending he’s not really on a mission to take back the Holy Land for Christians? In any case, criminalizing “apology for a crime” seems like a pretty illiberal law, even if the shirt was supposed to be in support of the 9/11 attacks. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/13 "2013-03-24T08:16:39Z")
The charge’s name is mistranslated (false friends); a correct translation will be more along the lines of “praising a crime”. Things such as praising criminals in public on account of their crimes (so, not on account of things such as “he’s a great engineer” or “he’s always been very nice to us”) fall under that label. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/14 "2013-03-24T08:53:23Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > The charge’s name is mistranslated (false friends); a correct translation will be more along the lines of “praising a crime”. Things such as praising criminals in public on account of their crimes (so, not on account of things such as “he’s a great engineer” or “he’s always been very nice to us”) fall under that label. Thanks. Still a stupid law in any case, though. I actually buy the families story. “Je suis une bombe” is a popular French expression equivalent to the English “I’m the bomb” (you can even buy one from the famed terrorist cell at [American Apparel](http://www.spreadshirt.ie/t-shirt-C4408A17203430)), and the shirt was apparently a birthday gift, so putting his name and birth date makes sense. Kinda dense not to realize the connection people would make, but then, “Jyhad” obviously doesn’t have the same connotations to the kids mother as it does to Westerners, so its easy to see how she overlooked the conclusion people would draw. If it weren’t for the douchebag politician trying to make hay out of it, the incident would just be a funny coincidence. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/15 "2013-03-24T11:32:06Z")
It’s just another case of “look at me” brought on by some “I want attention” tendencies. Some people just _have_ to have their 15 minutes of fame. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/16 "2013-03-24T12:46:55Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > The charge’s name is mistranslated (false friends); a correct translation will be more along the lines of “praising a crime”. a•pol•o•gy 2. a. A defense or justification of a cause or doctrine. 2. a. A formal justification or defense. [Latin apologia, from Greek apologi : apo-, apo- + logos, speech; see leg- in Indo-European roots.] Synonyms: apology, apologia, defense, justification These nouns denote a statement that excuses or defends something, such as a past action or a policy: arguments that constituted an apology for capital punishment; published an apologia expounding her version of the events; a defense based on ignorance of the circumstances; an untenable justification for police brutality. The meaning is shared in English, French and Spanish. ---
**Author:** ![April\_R](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@April\_R](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/April_R)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/17 "2013-03-24T15:19:39Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > right. It’s not like muslims, you know, actually celebrated the bombings on 11 Sept 2001. > > naw, never… :rolleyes: So did some Evanaglcial Christians, conspiracy theorists, and crackpots. What is your point, that a minority of people celebrated the attacks? What does this have to do with this particular case? What is more likely is that Jyhad is a common name, she couldn’t prevent her baby being born on Sept 11, and his uncle thought his nephew was “the bomb” ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/18 "2013-03-24T15:38:36Z")
Yeah, I can almost buy the “complete coincidence” angle, except… why print a kid’s birthdate on the back of a shirt? I’ve seen a lot of kids wearing t-shirts, some with their names on them, but don’t remember ever seeing a birthdate. It seems like an odd thing to label them with for no apparent reason… particularly since it omitted the year of his birth. [This](http://i.imgur.com/UID5IJg.jpg) is apparently a photo of the shirt in question. I’m not really on board with the criminal charges, but it makes it harder for me to believe they were oblivious to the connotation. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/19 "2013-03-24T15:58:43Z")
> [@Lochdale](#): > > Yet that’s not the context in which the name is being used here. I don’t claim to know what the mom was thinking when she named her kid, but I wanted to point out it’s not particularly shocking that a typically innocuous, and apparently quite common. name is “allowed.” It’s kind of like naming your kid “Purity.” In some contexts, it may refer to some gnarly white supremacist BS. If I was the only black family in a recently desegregated town and my white power neighbor named his kid “Purity,” I might raise my eyebrows. But most of the time, it’s a fairly normal religious value name. Most Muslims don’t think “let’s all be terrorists” when they hear “jihad,” they think of the theological, rather than political, use of the term. In any case, as a card carrying American, I find the idea of people being arrested for writing something on a tee-shirt a bit strange. We have a right to be as tasteless as we like, goddammit. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2013, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768/20 "2013-03-24T16:33:32Z")
> [@](#): > > Makouh said Lagneau was acting out of political interest, currying favor among anti- immigrant voters for municipal elections scheduled next year. Although a conservative, Lagneau faces a challenge from the far-right National Front. The front is strong among the 18,500 residents of Sorgues, and its rising star, Marion Marechal-Le Pen, is considering a run for mayor, Makouh said. > > “This area is like Mississippi in the United States during the civil rights struggle,” he said. I was wondering what was the French translation of Arpaio. It turns out it’s Lagneau. The Civil Rights struggle ain’t over anywhere in the world. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-mother-of-jihad-goes-on-trial-in-france/653768.md?page=2)