Pens and Swords

‘The pen is mightier than the sword’ has found new expression in the ‘Je suis Charlie’ slogan adopted my thousands in the aftermath of the attack on the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris by individuals linked to Al Quaeda.  These murders, and those of police officers and shoppers in related incidents, are inexcusable.

They have also served to turn the cartoonists at Charlie Hebdo into modern martyrs for freedom of speech, over against repressive ideologies that would seek to impose restrictions not only on actions and speech, but even on thoughts, if only they were able.

I am entirely in favour of freedom of speech and I am entirely opposed to repression, particularly (given my belief in the existence of God) repression that is religiously motivated. The fact that I disagree with the doctrines and the methods espoused by Islamists does little to ease my sense of discomfort.

I am, however, also made uneasy by the ‘Je suis Charlie’ slogan. I understand that it reflects a desire to protect freedom of speech and to that extent I go along with it, but while I defend the cartoonists’ right to publish what they did, I do not want to be associated with their ideas or methods.

Paradoxically, both Al Quaeda and Charlie Hebdo advocate restrictive societies, one by the sword and the other by the pen. Al Quaeda wishes to establish a monochrome Islamist state while Charlie Hebdo promotes a monochrome secularist state. Both want ‘public space’ to be ideologically regulated. Of course, there is a world of difference in their methodologies: scatological humour might well be offensive (and some of their cartoons such as that depicting Jesus engaged in anal sex with God the Father was deliberately meant to be offensive), but such offence does not compare with the abomination of murder.

I readily agree that a modern secular society is preferable to a fundamentalist religious one, but these are not the only options. Inclusive pluralism, in which all individuals and groups, religious and secular alike, are welcomed and valued is the hallmark of a truly liberal and open society. Of course, there are limits to pluralism; it can only work if disparate groups are prepared to be inclusive in the sense that they value others and do not seek to impose their ideologies on others. Fascists (secular or religious) remain beyond the Pale, but there is ample room for public expressions of Islam and other religions just as there is for expressions of non-religious ideologies.

There can be no place for ideologically inspired terror and murder in an inclusive pluralist society. There is room for offensive humour in an open society so Charlie Hebdo must be protected and permitted to publish, but I have to say that I much prefer mutual respect to mockery.

Je suis Charlie? I’m afraid, that with a heavy heart, I have to say ‘Non’