On page 220 Levey and Modood write, “First, should the Muhammad cartoons have been commissioned and published by Jyllands-Posten (or any responsible outlet)? Second, what response does their publication warrant, if any?” Then, on page 241, after a long discussion regarding the ins and outs of the questions above, the authors write, “Once we break with the idea that (contemporary) recism is only about biology, then we should be able to see that cultural and religious groups also can be racialised; that Muslims can be the victims of racism qua Muslims as well as qua Asians or Arabs or Bosnians.” How can it be determined if a cartoon, or other artistic description, is being done to incite racism? Should the line be drawn by members the of the community that is being targeted, or should the government (assuming a liberal democratic government) make that decision?
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2 thoughts on “How far is too far?”
stabakha
I believe that the government should hold certain guidelines about opinions made about religious groups. The reading discussed that it is important not to assume that your thoughts would not 100% display some type of racism. Many people understand statements in different manners, and some may be perceived in the negative connotation. To determine if a cartoon or other artistic description is being done to incite racism, the government should hand out a survey or something of that sort to give to racial groups to give their opinions on how offended they may be. This can then determine if the cartoon is deemed racist or not.
ademaio
The intention is beside the point. If mass amounts of people suffer or are offended by something that is more notable than the intention. With this being said, it becomes easier to see how people ought to behave in a scenario like this. Regardless of intention, one must be aware of their audience at least to an extent and cater to how they will respond or feel. Their commentaries have to be obvious enough and on target, if they want to be successful.