Av Hans Rustad
Charlie Hebdo fikk amerikanske PENs pris for ytringsmot tirsdag kveld under en grand galla-tilstelning i New Yorks Museum of Natural History. Det kostet 1.250 dollar Ä delta. Tilstelningen er amerikanske PENs mÄte Ä samle inn penger pÄ. à rets grand galla ble spesiell pÄ bakgrunn av brÄket rundt tildelingen til Charlie Hebdo. Bladet var representert av sjefredaktÞr Gérard Biard og filmkritikeren Jean-Baptiste Thoret.
âBeing shocked is part of democratic debate,â said Mr. Biard, who accepted the award with the magazineâs film critic, Jean-Baptiste Thoret. âBeing shot is not.â
Amerikanske PENs ledelse ba ikke om unnskyldning.
Andrew Solomon, the president of PEN, opened his remarks with a nod to the âwhale in the room,â a reference to the debate, and the blue whale hovering over the 800 guests in the museumâs Hall of Ocean Life.
âThe defense of people murdered for their exercise of free speech is at the heart of what PEN stands for,â he said. âSo is the unfettered expression of opposing viewpoints.â
OgsÄ utenfor museet var det heavy security, etter angrepet i Garland, Texas, sÞndag.
Biard forsÞker Ä gjendrive pÄstandene om at Hebdo er spesielt kritisk mot islam og muslimer.
In a meeting with The New York Timesâs editorial board on Thursday,Mr. Biard said that Charlie Hebdo attacked belief systems, including all religions, not groups. He cited the results of a study in the newspaper Le Monde indicating that only seven of roughly 500 Charlie Hebdo covers published from 2005 to 2015 primarily mocked Islam. âWeâre not obsessed with Islam,â he said. âWeâre dealing with politics, with other religions.â
Flere pÄ mÞtet bedyret av Charlie Hebdos credentials er uklanderlige.
The gala highlighted the magazineâs anti-racist history. The French-Congolese novelist Alain Mabanckou paid tribute to the magazineâs belief that âthere were no taboos when it came to exercising free speech.â Dominique Sopo, the president of the French anti-bias group SOS Racisme, flew in from Paris for an unannounced visit.
âIt is very important we do not kill those who died a second time by raising a polemic like this,â he said, referring to charges that the magazine was racist. âRemember that Charlie Hebdo stands for anti-hatred.â
After Protests, Charlie Hebdo Members Receive Standing Ovation at PEN Gala. Se ogsĂ„ “Danmark takker Charlie Hebdo”