There’s being provocative in order to make a point, and then there’s just poking people in the eye to be offensive. And many editorial cartoonists who know the difference are staying out of today’s Facebook-ignited campaign “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day.”
The “event” came to be after Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the creators of TV's "South Park," complained last month that Comedy Central edited their attempts to render the prophet Muhammad. Some Muslims consider any depiction of Muhammad to be blasphemous.
Chicago Tribune cartoonist Scott Stantis told The Washington Post’s Michael Cavna, author of the “Comic Riffs” blog, “the 'Draw Muhammad Day' is a demonstration in the worst impulse for some editorial cartoonists.” Others echoed that sentiment, including Seattle Post-Intelligencer cartoonist David Horsey and San Diego Union-Tribune cartoonist Steve Breen, who told Cavna, “I don't think it's kowtowing to be respectful of another's belief system.”
Horsey and Breen are among 19 Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonists who signed a petition to support Stone and Parker, along with cartoonists Ted Rall, Mike Peters, Clay Bennett and Matt Davies — none of whom planned to do a Muhammad cartoon for Thursday.
On the opposite side, one signer, recent Pulitzer winner Mark Fiore, whose work appears on SFgate.com, told Cavna his political animation Thursday will incorporate Muhammad.
Sacramento Bee cartoonist Rex Babin, president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists, also declined to participate, telling Cavna, “I would be opposed to our organization getting behind such an ‘event’ because … something like that can be too easily co-opted by interest groups [whose agenda can go] beyond a simple defense of free expression.”
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