Bravo, Philadelphia Muslims. No bombs, no violence, no threats. Let’s see more of this. From Dow Jones Newswire, with thanks to Twostellas:
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- About two dozen Muslims picketed the offices of the Philadelphia Inquirer Monday after it reprinted a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to a report in the New York Times, the Inquirer, owned by Knight Ridder Inc. (KRI) (KRI), was the first major U.S. newspaper to run the cartoon, which has sparked fury throughout the Muslim world.
The Inquirer reported Tuesday that Executive Editor Amanda Bennett and Deputy Managing Editor Carl Lavin talked with the protesters outside the building.
“Neither I nor the newspaper meant any disrespect to their religion or their prophet,” Bennett said in the report on the Inquirer’s Web site. “I told them I was actually really proud of them for exercising their right to freedom of speech.”
But Bennett stood by the decision to publish the cartoon, saying it “is one of the things newspapers do to communicate directly with people” about issues important to all communities.
According to the report, the Majlis Ash’Shura is calling for a boycott of the Inquirer until it issues a public apology to its Muslim readers. If the newspaper does not, the group says it will be back with more protesters mustered from Friday afternoon prayers, typically the most well-attended service of the week.