In 2007 the Canadian tv show Second Regard wanted to explore the issue of Muslim anger in Europe following publication of certain cartoons of the prophet Mohammed.
Second Regard is a programme on Radio-Canada, the French language public broadcaster. Loosely translated as “another look”, or “ a deeper look”, it explores religious and existential issues
Host Alain Crevier went to Paris to the magazine Charlie Hebdo to speak to the journalists there who were behind caricatures that caused them to receive death threats from Muslim extremists (
In light of the killings at Charlie Hebdo last week, the show decided this past Sunday, January 11, to rebroadcast interviews with the staff. I spoke with host Alain Crevier
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In 2004, Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh was murdered by a Muslim because of his film Submission, which criticized the treatment of women in Islam.
In 2005, a Danish newspaper published cartoons of Mohammed in relation to the debate about press freedom to comment and criticize Muslim issues and also of self-censorship by the media.
In response to rejection of legal complaint against the paper in 2006, Danish Muslim Imams began tirades against the paper and Danish government which led in 2007 to many violent demonstrations in Europe and in Muslim countries around the world. Several Danish and other western embassies and consulates were damaged.
When the editor of a French newspaper was sacked for reprinting the Mohammed cartoons, Charlie Hebdo felt this was an attack on press freedom.
Charlie Hebdo, in it’s tradition of criticizing extremists, though not religion itself, reprinted the Mohammed cartoons in 2007 leading to a number of threats against the magazine and its staff. It was in this context that Radio Canada interviewed the journalists.
They pointed out they were not against Muslims at all, but against extremists, and extremists in any and all religions who would attempt to dictate what is acceptable or not in society.
They insisted it was up to legislators to determine laws in democratic countries like France, not religions.
Interviews with Charlie Hedbo artists Cabu and Philippe Val (2007) in French
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