(the following was posted on the Forums by long-time contributor/poet/scribe Shai-Hulud – certainly grist for debate as this controversy continues to get media play)
“From my perspective as an American Muslim, I have a couple of things to address to my European brothers about the Danish cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammed (pbuh).
Why should Denmark be sanctioned by other nations for what an privately-owned paper published?
For all the issues you could be directing your anger toward, why this? If only I saw this much indignation over the 500 muslims detained in Guantanamo Bay.
It is not forbidden to non-muslims to portray the prophet in images. The Prophet said “Let there be no compulsion in religion(Qu, 2:256)”. Non-muslims should never be forcefully compelled to see things our way.
This summer, Fadi Abdullatif, spokesman for a Danish chapter of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, claimed that his threats against Danish politicians and Jews were protected speech. Why can’t MJ-P be allowed their protected speech?
If you really believe that Islam is compatible with democracy, who among European Muslims are willing to use democratic means to their ends. My brothers in a small college town of Houghton, MI managed to get halal foods shipped for sale at local food stores. They didn’t do this by burning flags and threatening the proprieters , but by asking(most important) and rallying support among influential townspeople.
Wouldn’t it be a good idea to boycott the newspaper, better yet, use that money that would have gone to MJ-P to support Danes who support PFLP(if that’s your thing)?”