Editorial cartoonists around the world responded with a united voice Thursday after terrorists slaughtered 12 people at a French satirical magazine saying the terrorists could not scare them away from their work.
“It did not strike fear in my heart, but I was more angry than fearful,” said Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist Jim Morin of the Miami Herald.
At issue for the terrorists and editorial cartoonist is freedom of expression, no matter how offensive some may find it. In America, editorial cartoons have never shied away from being controversial with their imagery. Morin says he hopes people enjoy his cartoons, but if they anger you, so be it.
“You are not going to make everybody happy 100 percent of the time,” Morin said.
The slaughter of the workers at Charlie Hebdo prompted a debate among American media and media critics. At issue was should the media show images from the magazine when discussing the slaughter, even if those images might anger some communities.
Morin’s response to the mass murder was to show artist pens raining down on the terrorist like arrows.
“Basically, what I want to say is that this is not a victory for terrorism; that we will prevail on this,” Morin told NBC 6’s Hank Tester.
Local
Morin said that editorial cartoonists call them like they see them and are more than happy to take the heat for what they draw. In addition, he said artists like him are unwilling to go soft on those who object to their pursuit of free speech.
“It is just part of what we do,” Morin said.
