Last September, Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten addressed a
very serious issue ““ the assault on freedom of speech. What
it recognized was that there is more to freedom of speech than its
mere legal protection. The attitudes of the individuals of a
society about speech in general lead to either continued freedom or
its erosion into full-fledged tyranny and oppression.
When a Danish children’s author could not procure
illustrators for his book about Islam because they did not want to
depict Muhammad for fear of offending Muslim sensitivities,
Jyllands-Posten knew that it had to take a stand against
self-censorship, religious dogma and unreason. They published the
infamous 12 cartoons.
Self-censorship is not the same as the rational decision not to
speak. Reasoned abstinence requires relying on one’s own
independent and rational judgment and considering the long-term
consequences of one’s actions. Self-censorship is the
opposite ““ it’s the abnegation of the self,
substituting one’s own judgment with that of another’s.
To abstain from drawing for a children’s book in deference to
the irrational religious sensitivities is self-censorship. To
abstain from senseless provocation is good judgment. To take a
stand against self-censorship and irrational religiosity is
heroic.
Some have stood in support of Jyllands-Posten, but the vast
majority of the media have surrendered their right to speak,
confessing a lack of self-esteem instead of asserting the value of
their ideas. The rock-throwing, flag-burning, embassy-sacking and
death threats only underscore the need to confidently proclaim that
we will not be silenced. Those who respond to ideas with force
should not be tolerated ““ and neither should we cater to the
backward mentality that predicates it.
Furthermore, many secular individuals find religion offensive.
Does a secular man ask the religious one to stop speaking because
he finds him offensive? No ““ usually he just ignores him. Why
the double standard?
Western governments and media have done little to support this
basic right. This evening, student group L.O.G.I.C., which stands
for Liberty, Objectivity, Greed, Individualism and Capitalism,
stands in support of those who have the courage to defend their
rights. L.O.G.I.C. will be displaying the Danish cartoons at a
panel discussion regarding the above issues. The violent reaction
of the opponents of free speech only emphasizes the importance of
displaying the cartoons and exposing the backward, irrational evil
that underlies those who practice self-censorship or demand it
through intimidation.
L.O.G.I.C. has been denounced for pouring oil into the
proverbial fire. Denounce instead those who created the fire.
L.O.G.I.C. has been accused of having “ulterior”
motives ““ of wanting media attention. But they are far from
ulterior ““ they are front and center with the principles we
advocate.
We take our ideas seriously, we know them to be true and we want
to share them. When the stakes are high, when the issue is a
fundamental liberty of concern to all individuals in a free
society, when under attack is the freedom to even have media
attention at all ““ we would be remiss not to take all steps
to make others aware, or worse, to ignore the issue and stay
silent.
I encourage all UCLA students to come to the event to support
freedom of speech against those who would silence it. Staying at
home out of deference to religious “sensibilities” only
encourages self-censorship. The responsibility lies with each of us
to stand up for our own ideas and not play the role of apologists.
If you are so irrational that mere pictures can drive you to blind
fury, you need to see them more than anyone.
Lechtholz-Zey is the chief executive officer of
L.O.G.I.C.