Jan 20, 2015

The ready conflation of 'freedom of speech' fillip with free-for-all racism

Most satirical cartoonists I follow tend not to agree with Joe Sacco's take on CH. 

But I do.

The ready conflation of 'freedom of speech' fillip with free-for-all racism seems to have missed their perspective, at least within the black and white constraints of comic making.
But Sacco attempts to express the complexity of the context and reflect that back on the responsibilities of satirists.

At issue ultimately is calling out CH for what it is and for what it does. That's not the same as advocating that satire be censored. 

Unfortunately the whole 'Je suis Charlie' thing will transit a pandemic of public Islamophobia under guise of 'freedom of speech' and the most racist dog in any land will be celebrated for their courage and POV.

Under cover of 'satire' -- more public racism against Moslems, more excuses for rolling back civil liberties and a festering rationale for either killing more of 'them' offshore and xenophobia.

"Freedom of speech" historically is supposedly about empowerment and democracy -- enabling the oppressed and brutalised to articulate their protest. 

So how does that stack up with the current fall out?