In this article, Jardar Nikan Alaei explains that on 16th October 2020, Friday, in the Conflans-Sainte-Honorine school, near Paris, Samuel Paty, a teacher, was killed by a Muslim extremist Abdullakh Anzorov. After the incident, the debate about freedom of speech and critics of Islam have spread around the world.
Samuel Paty was teaching his students about Freedom of speech and in the process, he showed the class a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammed made by Charlie Hebdo magazine. Before Mr. Paty showed the photo, he turned to the Muslim students of the class and said, “I know this is provocative for you so you guys can leave the class or not see the photo.” In Islam you are not supposed to make and see any photos of the Prophet Muhammed. Mr. Paty should have respected the faiths and sentiments of the students. Many students and their Parents criticized the school of being Islamophobic and the lack of respect that Mr. Paty showed. They expressed their frustration on social media and when Mr. Anzorov heard about the news, he decided to end the conflict in his sick way. On Friday, 16th October 2020 he walked into the school ground and he beheaded Samuel Paty.
After the incident, the whole nation mourned the murder of Samuel Paty and the French president Emmanuel Macron asserted, “We have to set time to fight against Islamic Extremism.” Many Muslims around the world and also minority groups in Europe feel that the state and the rest of French society can discriminate against them.
Right after the incident, Two French Muslim women were harassed by their non-Muslim citizens. On 18th October 2020, 2 Muslim women, (Kenza and Amel) having Algerian descents, were walking with their children on the Champs-de-Mars Paris. They met 2 French women that had a large dog with them. Kenza’s and Amel’s children were scared of the dog so they asked the other women if they could control their dog. The 2 French women took a knife and stabbed both of them in their head. They called them names as Dirty Arabs. Kenza, Amel and their children luckily survived, and the French women were arrested. What happened to Kenza and Amel is a consequence of the murder of Samuel Paty.
Both of these incidents are an important brick under the debate of the limit of freedom of speech in France. The Muslim students in Mr. Paty’s class wanted to be respected and they did not want bloodshed or violence. The boundary of freedom of speech shouldn’t mean hateful discussions or disrespecting other groups.
Sources:
1.the guardian(17.10.2020) Teacher decapitated in Paris named as Samuel Paty, 47 26.10.2020 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/17/teacher-decapitated-in-paris-named-as-samuel-paty-47
2. BBC News(20.10.2020) Samuel Paty: Beheading of teacher deepens divisions over France's secular identity, 26.10.2020 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54602171
3. NRK(18.10.2020) Drapsmistenkte skal ha blitt stadig mer religiøs de siste årene
26.10.2020 https://www.nrk.no/urix/drapsmistenkte-skal-ha-blitt-stadig-mer-religios-de-siste-arene-1.15205113
4.Daily Mail(21.10.2020) Two Muslim women are stabbed under the Eiffel Tower by white female attackers shouting 'Dirty Arabs' after argument about dogs amid rising tensions after teacher was beheaded for Mohammed cartoons 26.10.2020 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8861799/Paris-attack-Two-Muslim-woman-stabbed-Eiffel-Tower.html
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