I am not Charlie Hebdo

I am not Charlie Hebdo.

For a western magazine, like Charlie Hebdo, to attack Islam through satire is to agree with the imperial project of the West. Islam is a minority religion in the West. None of the ruling elites within the West embrace Islam. Islam is not associated with political power within the West.

It is however associated with an oppressed minority within the West. These people are vilified in the press, insulted and attacked in the streets, and are subject to police harassment. They are oppressed by power in the West.

In Islamic countries, Islam is both a tool of oppression and a means of resistance. It is tool of oppression because religious law is used to crush dissent against the government. But it is a tool of resistance against the imperial powers by giving the people the language and will to resist the military incursions and invasions by the Western powers.

For me as an Australian to satirise Islam to give aid and comfort to the imperialist exploitation of Islamic countries. I am not being oppressed by an Islamic government, nor am I in any danger of being so.

I see oppression by a Capitalist government that uses Christianity, not Islam, to justify its actions. Thus, it is fit and proper to attack the Christians for allowing their religion to be used as a means of keeping power.

Press freedom is not an absolute right. It is a necessity for those resisting oppression. It is an abuse of privilege for those who support and enable oppression.