SPI Fellows’ Corner: Speaking Out about Charlie Hebdo
Fellow Tasrima NasrinÔÇöaward-winning writer, physician, secular humanist, and human rights activistÔÇöblogged last week about having been invited to Charlie HebdoÔÇÖs office in Paris a few years ago. She shared with her readers that, even at that time, the cartoonists were accustomed to death threats, and they knew that their company name appeared on Al QaedaÔÇÖs most-wanted list. Still, they carried on with their work and their message: to reject all forms of religious fundamentalism, violence, and terror, at all costs.
ÔÇ£Those were intelligent works of art,ÔÇØ Nasrin writes. ÔÇ£Some people complain they were provocative. But they have all the right to be provocative, and no one should have the right to kill them for being provocative.ÔÇØ She goes on to explain that the Quran contains many parables that glorify violence against the un-Islamic (such as the ProphetÔÇÖs killing of 800 Jewish men of the Banu Qurayza tribe), as well as several ÔÇ£express commandments to Muslims to kill non-Muslims.ÔÇØ
Nasrin argues that teaching a ÔÇ£scientific outlookÔÇØ is the only way to counteract the indoctrination of children with fanatical faiths, helping them to know the difference between right and wrong in a broader societal context. Religious reform, she offers, is both the surest and least-likely answer to the problem of terroristic violence.
Meanwhile, Fellow Marty Klein called out CNN for what he deems ÔÇ£cowardiceÔÇØ in the networkÔÇÖs reporting of Charlie HebdoÔÇÖs first post-assassination release. In spite of the issueÔÇÖs success, printing and selling 3 million copies, Klein notes that the popular news network failed to show an image of its coverÔÇönot for reasons of respect, he argues, but out of fear.
ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs because they donÔÇÖt want to get assassinated,ÔÇØ Klein comments. ÔÇ£They donÔÇÖt want to pay tens of millions of dollars in additional security to protect their people around the world.ÔÇØ He worries that ÔÇ£people who are willing to kill those by whom they are offended now have the ultimate hecklerÔÇÖs vetoÔÇØÔÇöa win for the intimidation tactics of terrorism. Worse, Klein laments, CNN missed an opportunity to bravely express fear of a violent group, hiding behind political correctness.
Incidentally, it wasnÔÇÖt politics as usual on the Hill last week, as Fellow Michael Shermer closed out eight successful meetings with congressional staff. He discussed his book, The Moral Arc, and the state of secular issues in the House. A few of the offices requested that Shermer return for private briefings on science policy in the near future.
House to discuss how his findings relate to the current state of American politics.
A new report from the International Humanist and Ethical Union shows that even as religious belief is in global decline, a number of governments are stepping up attempts to portray secularists and atheists in a negative and often dangerous light. The report cites 13 Muslim states where apostasy and blasphemy are capital offenses; in Russia, public expression of atheist views can be treated as a criminal blasphemous offense. The trend is even seen in some western countries, like Britain, whose government has recently dropped atheism and humanism from religious studies in state schools.
In the last fifty years, the Jewish population across America has changed drastically. With a third of millennial Jews identifying themselves as non-religious, and the growing numbers of inter-faith marriages – which often lead to a downplayed role of religion – the number of religious and practicing people of Jewish descent are in decline. While some Humanist Jewish groups have begun to spring up across the country, it remains to be seen what the effects of the secular Jewish culture on the population as a whole.
An atheist group recently sued Ocala, Florida in response to an officially sponsored community-wide prayer vigil. In this interview from Fox News, watch mayor Kent Guinn explain the case and the event that started it all, which he refers to as a “prayer rally for all religions.” The group bringing the legal challenge argues that the city is showing preference to one religion and violating constitutional rights in doing so.
Edwina Rogers, CEO of Secular Policy Institute, has recently returned from a conference in Muscat, Oman, where General David Petraeus was the keynote speaker. In addition to making connections and receiving advice from experts in various fields, three new fellows agreed to join forces with the Secular Policy Institute: