Religious Strife over Danish Cartoon

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The conflict I chose to pursue was one I'm sure many have heard of.  In 2005 there were a number of cartoons published depicting Muhammad, a central figure in Islam. These cartoons were considered offensive and angered many Muslims who cited the Qur'an passage stating that Muhammad should never be drawn.  This conflict did not begin as a physical one, but shortly after the cartoon was published, some people (Muslims mostly) began burning Danish flags in protest of it.  There have been many incidents since then of the same cartoon or other similar ones being published in newspapers in Europe.  From the interview I read, I gained an interesting perspective on how it affected ALL Muslims, not just the radicals one might hear about on the news.  It was also interesting to read about the different reasons why this was such a controversial topic in the Islamic religion.

I chose this resource not only because it was a large, wide-scaled conflict, but also because I was familiar with news relating to it.  I can remember hearing the first news stories about it and the instant, hostile reaction the cartoon evoked. This mockery of a religion through a cartoon is just one example of religious intolerance in our world today.  It is important to recognize that it exists so that we may try to fix it.




Siegel, Robert, dir. "Understanding Muslim Anger over Cartoons." NPR - All Things Considered. 3 Feb. 2006. NPR. 3 Feb. 2012. Web. 3 Oct. 2012. <http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=5188026>.