Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy

The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy is a controversy about a series of cartoons. They were first published in a Danish newspaper. The publication led to an outcry, and sparked violent protests in the Islamic world, with many people dying. The cartoons were drawn and created by Kurt Westergaard.

The crisis began after cartoons depicting the Islamic prophet Muhammad were published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on September 30, 2005. Danish Muslim organizations staged protests in response. As the controversy has grown, some or all of the cartoons have been reprinted in newspapers in more than fifty other countries. The protests got worse when fake cartoons were released.

One of the cartoons showed Muhammad with a bomb in his turban. Some people thought this was saying that all Muslims are terrorists. But other cartoons made fun of the Jyllands-Posten newspaper. One insulted the editors of the newspaper, by using the language Farsi.

Critics claims that the cartoons are culturally insulting, Islamophobic, blasphemous, and intended to humiliate a "marginalized" minority. However, supporters of the cartoons claim they illustrate an important issue and their publication exercises the right of free speech. They have also claimed that similar cartoons are made relative to other religions, arguing that Islam and its followers have not been targeted in a discriminatory way.

Related pages

• Jesus with erection

Other websites

• The page that contains Muhammad cartoons