Everybody Draw Mohammed Day
Everybody Draw Mohammed Day was a 2010 event in support of artists threatened with violence for drawing representations of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It stemmed from a protest against censorship of the American television show South Park episode "201", led by the show's distributor Comedy Central, in response to death threats that had been made against some of those responsible for two segments broadcast in April 2010. A drawing representing Muhammad was posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, with a message suggesting that "everybody" create a drawing depicting Muhammad on May 20 in support of free speech.
U.S. cartoonist Molly Norris of Seattle, Washington, created the artwork in reaction to Internet death threats that had been made against animators Trey Parker and Matt Stone for depicting Muhammad in an episode of South Park. Postings on RevolutionMuslim.com had said that Parker and Stone could wind up like Theo van Gogh, a Dutch filmmaker who was stabbed and shot to death.
Norris claimed that if people draw pictures of Muhammad, Islamist terrorists would not be able to murder them all, and threats to do so would become unrealistic. Within a week, Norris' idea became popular on Facebook, was supported by numerous bloggers, and generated coverage on the blog websites of major U.S. newspapers. As the publicity mounted, Norris and the man who created the first Facebook page promoting the May 20 event disassociated themselves from it. Nonetheless, planning for the protest continued with others "taking up the cause". Facebook had an "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" page, which grew to over 100,000 participants. A protest page on Facebook against the initiative named "Against 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day attracted slightly more supporters. Subsequently, Facebook was temporarily blocked by Pakistan; the ban was lifted after Facebook agreed to block the page for users in India and Pakistan.
In the media, Everybody Draw Mohammed Day attracted support from commentators who felt that the campaign represented important issues of freedom of speech, and the need to stand up for this freedom.
History
Background
South Park episodes "200" and "201", broadcast in April 2010, featured a character in a bear costume, about whom various other characters stated was Muhammad. The South Park episode sparked statements from the criminal extremist website Revolution Muslim, which posted a picture of the partially decapitated body of the Dutch filmmaker, Theo van Gogh, with a statement declaring that Parker and Stone could meet a similar fate. The group running the website said it was not threatening Parker and Stone, but it also posted the addresses of Comedy Central's New York office and the California production studio where South Park is made. Comedy Central self-censored the episode when it was broadcast by removing the word "Muhammad" and a speech about intimidation and fear from the South Park episode.Molly Norris cartoon
Molly Norris drew the original, poster-like cartoon on April 20, 2010, which declared May 20, 2010, to be the first annual "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day". The drawing showed various anthropomorphized objects, including a coffee cup, a cherry, and a box of pasta, each claiming to be the likeness of Muhammad. Norris used an alternative transliteration of "Mohammed" on her poster. Across the top of the illustration, she wrote: The poster included a claim of sponsorship by an organization named "Citizens Against Citizens Against Humor or CACAH ", which Norris later said was purely fictional. Norris dedicated the cartoon to the creators of South Park, Matt Stone and Trey Parker.In late April, after she had rejected the idea for the May 20 protest, Norris stated on her website: "This was always a drawing about rights, never MEANT to disrespect religion. Alas – if we don't have rights, we will not be able to practice the religion of our choice. None of these little characters ARE the likeness of Mohammed, they are just CLAIMING to be!" She also wrote, "I, the cartoonist, NEVER launched a draw Mohammed day. It is, in this FICTIONAL poster sponsored by this FICTIONAL GROUP", referring to the "Citizens Against Citizens Against Humor" wording in the cartoon. "SATIRE about a CURRENT EVENT, people!!! "
Early publicity
Norris circulated the cartoon to bloggers based in Seattle, Washington. She sent a copy of her illustration to Dan Savage, who posted it on his blog on April 22. On April 23, she was interviewed by Dave Ross of KIRO, a Seattle radio station. Norris responded to a question, "Are you sure you want to do this?", and said "Yeah, I want to water down the targets... as a cartoonist, I just felt so much passion about what had happened, I wanted to counter Comedy Central's message about feeling afraid." The motivation for the protest was not simply to defend the South Park creators, but also to support the right to free speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. She also said, "it's a cartoonist's job to be non-PC". On her website, Norris stated that the idea was not to disrespect Islam, but to support everybody's freedom of expression.An "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" Facebook page was created by Jon Wellington. By the morning of April 26, the page had almost 6,000 confirmed guests. By April 25, someone had started a "Ban Everybody Draw Muhammad Day" counter-protest page on Facebook, which had 800 confirmed guests. Bloggers at The Atlantic, Reason, National Review Online and Glenn Reynolds in his "Instapundit" blog, all posted comments and links about the proposed day, giving it wide publicity. Blogs at The Washington Post and Los Angeles Times websites also posted news about the idea. Newser categorized the protest movement among, "online movements against tyranny". A blog was created for the fictional group "Citizens Against Citizens Against Humor", at www.cacah.org.
By April 27, over 9,000 guests confirmed that they planned to participate in the event. A story about the protest movement was one of the most popular articles highlighted on the website Digg.com. On April 28, The Malaysian Insider reported that the protest movement "appears to be gaining ground", and some schools planned to join in the event. Michael C. Moynihan of Reason stated he planned to select some of his favorite depictions of Muhammad from the protest movement, and then add them to the Reason.com website. By May 3, 2010, 11,000 members of the protest movement were on Facebook, and individuals had submitted over 460 pictures.
Cartoonist and Facebook page creator end involvement
On April 25, Norris wrote on her website that the response to her idea had surprised and shocked her: "I did not intend for my cartoon to go viral. I did not intend to be the focus of any 'group'. I practice the First Amendment by drawing what I wish. This particular cartoon of a 'poster' seems to have struck a gigantic nerve, something I was totally unprepared for. I am going back to the drawing table now!" On April 26, she wrote on her website: "I am NOT involved in "Everybody Draw Mohammd Day! I made a cartoon that went viral and I am not going with it. Many other folks have used my cartoon to start sites, etc. Please go to them as I am a private person who draws stuff". She also asked Savage to replace the original illustration she had given him with another one she drew that was tamer, but Savage refused. Asked why she initially publicized it, she replied, "Because I'm an idiot."Norris said the campaign had grown much bigger than she initially intended, and that her cartoon was being used in ways she could not control. "I just want to go back to my quiet life", she told the writer of a blog about comics at The Washington Post. Wellington announced on April 26 that he, too, was dropping out of the movement. "I am aghast that so many people are posting deeply offensive pictures of the Prophet," he wrote. "Y'all go ahead if that's your bag, but count me out." Norris acknowledged, "I said that I wanted to counter fear and then I got afraid." On April 29, Norris suggested that "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" be called off: "Let's call off 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day' by changing it to 'Everybody Draw Al Gore Day' instead. Enough Mohammed drawings have already been made to get the point across. At this juncture, such drawings are only hurtful to more liberal and moderate Muslims who have not done anything to endanger our first amendment rights." On May 1, Norris posted a marked up version of her original cartoon, apologizing to Muslims.
Norris' change in position received varying reactions from commentators. Kathleen Parker, an opinion columnist for The Washington Post, wrote, "Norris's cartoon was a fine idea, but she should be relieved of further duty or responsibility." Writing for The Daily Telegraph, Alex Spillius commented, "No one should blame Norris for withdrawing from the fray, for this kind of case throws up lingering and insidious uncertainties. Any threat could blow over quickly or endure, Rushdie-style, for decades. The row over the cartoons depicting Mohammed in the Danish paper Jyllands-Posten percolated for months before bubbling over into violent protests." William Wei of The Business Insider was more critical of the decision by the cartoonist to withdraw from the protest movement, with an article titled, "Artist Who Proposed 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!' To Protest South Park Censorship Wimps Out."
Protest movement continued
An information technology specialist named Mimi, based in Toronto, Canada, helped to lead the protest movement in the wake of the departures of Norris and Wellington. Mimi stated to AOL News that the protest movement should be regarded as, "pro-free speech, not anti-Muslim." She commented, "If are offended, they have the right to be offended – just like Christians." With regard to keeping with the tenets of freedom of speech, Mimi is permitting a wide array of depictions of Muhammad "except for those inciting violence or pornographic in nature." "Mainstream society does whatever the Muslim society asks out of fear of violence or political correctness. But if you want to live in a Western society and use the system to protect your rights, you have to be willing to allow others to have theirs as well," said Mimi.According to Paste Magazine, by April 30, 2010, "Norris' small protest grown to encompass 32 Facebook events with a combined total of over 11,000 people planning to participate." Ron Nurwisah of National Post noted, "Norris' backtracking might be a bit late as the event seems to have taken a life of its own," and Fox 9 also pointed out, "she may have started something she can't stop. Others have taken up the cause of 'Everybody Draw Muhammed Day'." Tim Edwards of The First Post pointed out, "It seems that nothing can now stop May 20, 2010 becoming the inaugural 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day'. Even if, in an ironic twist, its biggest backers have now been scared off."
Writing for ComicsAlliance, Laura Hudson noted that the website supported the protest movement and would participate in the event on May 20, 2010: "There is power in numbers, and if you're an artist, creator, cartoonist, or basically anyone who would like to exercise your right to free speech in a way that it is actively threatened, that would be the day to do it.... if you're an artist, cartoonist, or creator who plans to participate, drop us a line and let us know—we'll be adding our own terribly drawn rendition of the prophet here on ComicsAlliance when the day rolls around and we'd love it if you joined us." In a May 3, 2010 piece for The Washington Post blog, the founder and president of the Secular Coalition for America, Herb Silverman, wrote in support of the protest movement. Silverman stated he agreed with the rationale behind the idea, commenting, "Whether this succeeds or not, and I have no personal interest in drawing Muhammad, I support the concept. We must join together to stop injustice."
A columnist for The Washington Post Writers Group wrote that Norris should not be regarded as having further responsibility related to the movement, and affirmed that her Muhammad cartoon had significantly impacted a greater discussion about the issue. Telepolis described some of the pictures submitted to the Facebook group in support of the protest movement as, "funny, crude, silly, original, the whole range of possibilities." The Jawa Report urged individuals to participate in the protest movement, but encouraged them to post images reflecting positively on Muhammad. Writing in an editorial for The Washington Times, Jason Greaves urged individuals to participate in the protest event on May 20. Greaves concluded, "Theo van Gogh was murdered for making a movie critical of Islam. 'South Park' creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are threatened with the same fate. They deserve our solidarity, and I will stand with them by hosting images of Muhammad on my own website. Please stand with us."
In a May 17, 2010, article in The Daily Bruin, writer Tyler Dosaj noted that numbers of both supporters and critics of the protest movement were increasing: "The Facebook group is 35,000 strong. To compare, the anti-Draw Mohammed Day group is almost 30,000 strong. Both are gaining members rapidly." In a May 18, 2010 article, "Why We're Having an Everybody Draw Mohammed Contest on Thursday May 20", Reason editor Nick Gillespie explained: "No one has a right to an audience or even to a sympathetic hearing, much less an engaged audience. But no one should be beaten or killed or imprisoned simply for speaking their mind or praying to one god as opposed to the other or none at all or getting on with the small business of living their life in peaceful fashion. If we cannot or will not defend that principle with a full throat, then we deserve to choke on whatever jihadists of all stripes can force down our throats." Gillespie asserted, "Our Draw Mohammed contest is not a frivolous exercise of hip, ironic, hoolarious sacrilege toward a minority religion in the United States. It's a defense of what is at the core of a society that is painfully incompetent at delivering on its promise of freedom, tolerance, and equal rights." As May 20, 2010, came closer, Molly Norris stated she was staying away from being directly involved in the protest movement. Norris told Dave Ross, "I'm against my own concept becoming a reality.... If I had wanted to be taken seriously, I would be thrilled, but now I'm horrified because people did take it as an actual day. The one-off cartoon is not good as a long term plan because it's offensive." Fox News Channel reported that on May 19, 2010, a Facebook group supporting the protest movement had 41,000 members, and The Register reported this increased to 43,000 the same day. Norris told Fox News Channel in a statement on May 19, "It's turned into something completely different, nothing I could've imagined it morphing into. I'm happy some people are talking, because obviously this needs to be addressed." By May 20, the Toronto Sun reported that both the "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" group and the "Against 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day'" Facebook group protesting against the initiative had attracted more than 100,000 supporters, at 101,870 members and 106,000 members respectively.
On May 20, 2010, Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch of Reason announced the winners of the publication's "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day" contest. Gillespie and Welch warned the reader not to view the image "if you are offended by graphical representations of the Prophet Mohammed." Of the images highlighted, Gillespie and Welch explained: "The single most important element–and the thing that ties these selections together–is that each image forces the viewer to do two things. First, they consciously call into question the nature of representation, no small matter in fights over whether it is allowed under Islamic law to depict Mohammed... Second, each of the images forces the viewer to actively participate not simply in the creation of meaning but of actually constructing the image itself." There were two images in the position of runner-up – one was an artistic rendition of a tobacco smoking pipe. The depiction references surrealist artist René Magritte, and includes the text, "This is not a pipe. This is Muhammed." The Reason journalists commented that the image toyed with Magritte's "famous statement about the necessary disjuncture between a picture and the thing it seeks to represent." The second runner-up was a parody of the Where's Waldo? series, and the winner was a connect the dots picture. Commenting on the winner of the Reason contest, Gillespie and Welch concluded, "There is a deeper lesson here: Connect the dots and discover that we all must be Spartacus on Everybody Draw Mohammad Day. And that in a free society, every day is Everybody Draw Mohammed Day."