Why we published some ‘Charlie Hebdo’ covers

Earlier this month, The Riverdale Press reprinted two cartoons that were originally published by the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, in 2006 and 2007. We did so for two reasons: to show solidarity with the publication’s staff and to convey the newsworthiness of the images themselves

The covers read, in part; “Mahomet débordé par les intégristes” (“Muhammad overwhelmed by fundamentalists”) and “Il faut voiler ‘Charlie Hebdo’!” (“Charlie Hebdo must be veiled!”). They mock the prophet Muhammad and the Islamic faith, as well as clergy from Judaism and Christianity. 

They are either entertaining, blasphemous or plainly offensive, depending on your perspective. But the cartoons in no way justify the taking of 17 lives — journalists, police officers, cartoonists and innocent shoppers — who were murdered at Charlie Hebdo’s offices and then at a kosher market.

As the violence unfolded, we watched and shared in the collective pain of the French people. On Jan. 11, we saw more than 1.5 million people take to the streets of Paris, pencils and pens held in fists above a sea of humanity, demonstrating support for the ideals of an open society.

There were “Je suis Charlie Hebdo” posters in reference to the magazine’s contributors and “Je suis Ahmed” signs in memory of the Muslim police officer Ahmed Merabet, who was executed in the street outside of the magazine’s headquarters. 

Solidarity with the staff of Charlie Hebdo means more than changing a profile picture or tweeting a slogan. It is the belief that the right to free speech, even if that speech at times offends, is critical to maintaining a fair and open society.

Beyond trying to show solidarity with content creators across the Atlantic, we thought printing a small sample of Charlie Hebdo covers would help inform readers.

It was easy to look up the images online, but we thought that having a tactile, ink-smeared version of the genuine article drove home the magazine’s message — whether you find it offensive or brilliant — in a way that the Internet still cannot.