Everybody Draw Mohammed Day

Cartoon, "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" Everybody Draw Mohammed Day is an annual protest in support of free speech, specifically in opposition to those who threaten violence against artists who draw representations of the prophet Muhammad . It began as a protest against censorship of an American television show, South Park , " 201 " by its distributor, Comedy Central , in response to death threats against some of those responsible for the segment. Observance of the day began with a drawing posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, accompanied by text suggesting that "everybody" create a drawing representing Muhammad , on May 20, 2010, as a protest against efforts to limit freedom of speech . U.S. cartoonist Molly Norris of Seattle , Washington , created the artwork in reaction to Internet death threats that had been made against cartoonists Trey Parker and Matt Stone for depicting Muhammad in an episode of South Park . Depictions of Muhammad are explicitly forbidden by a few hadith (Islamic texts), though not by the Qur'an . The individuals running the website later denied that the postings were actual threats, although they were widely perceived as such. Norris said that if people draw pictures of Muhammad, Islamic 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 "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 about the same number of supporters. Subsequently, Facebook was temporarily blocked by Pakistan, impacting its 45 million Pakistani users; 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 both support from commentators who felt that the campaign represented important issues of freedom of speech, and the need to stand up for this freedom, as well as criticism from other commentators who found the initiative crass, juvenile, and needlessly offensive. Office of the Curator (May 8, 2003). "Courtroom Friezes: North and South Walls" (pdf) .

Cartoon, "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" Everybody Draw Mohammed Day (or 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 Mohammed was posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, with a message suggesting that "everybody" create a drawing depicting Mohammad 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 . Norris claimed that, if people draw pictures of Muhammad, radical 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 (101,870 members by May 20). A protest page on Facebook against the initiative named "Against ‘Everybody Draw Mohammed Day'" attracted slightly more supporters (106,000 by May 20). 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.

2010 action day Cartoon, "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" Everybody Draw Mohammed Day (or 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 Mohammed was posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, with a message suggesting that "everybody" create a drawing depicting Mohammad 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 . 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 (101,870 members by May 20). A protest page on Facebook against the initiative named "Against 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day ' " attracted slightly more supporters (106,000 by May 20). 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.

2010 action day Cartoon, "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" Everybody Draw Mohammed Day (or 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 . 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 (101,870 members by May 20). A protest page on Facebook against the initiative named "Against 'Everybody Draw Mohammed Day ' " attracted slightly more supporters (106,000 by May 20). 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.