US EditionHistory Today: How a Danish Newspaper Stirred a Row with Prophet Muhammad Cartoons
The cartoons challenged self-censorship on Islam and triggered protests, boycotts, and violence causing dozens of deaths, sparking a lasting debate on expression and respect.
- On the 30th of September in 2005, a series of twelve cartoons portraying the Prophet Muhammad were released by the Danish publication Jyllands-Posten, igniting worldwide controversy.
- The publication aimed to challenge self-censorship regarding Islam, as cultural editor Flemming Rose invited cartoonists to test free speech boundaries amid rising tensions.
- The cartoons ignited protests across the Muslim world in early 2006, including attacks on embassies, boycotts of Danish products, and violent demonstrations causing dozens of deaths.
- Rose insisted "affording special protections for any particular religion" contradicts secular democracy, while critics argued the images insulted Muslims and reinforced harmful stereotypes.
- The controversy sparked widespread discussion about the balance between the right to free speech and sensitivity toward religious convictions, shaping global conversations and contributing to subsequent incidents such as the 2015 attack on Charlie Hebdo.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Europe Learned Nothing From the Danish Cartoon Affair
(Mathias Loevfreen Bojese/AFP via Getty Images.)Growing up in Denmark in the early 2000s, I rarely worried about my right to free speech. In this cozy haven of liberal values and secular democracy, speaking freely felt as natural as breathing. Few contested this state of affairs, least of all religious groups, whose influence had long since faded.That outlook changed twenty years ago today. On September 30, 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Po…
In 2005, the cartoons of the "Jyllands-Posten" were to test tolerance. Twenty years later, it is fear that dictates the law, and freedom of expression that is losing the battle.
The 20th anniversary of the publication of the Muhammad cartoons is marked in Berlingske with an iconic illustration.
Twenty years ago, the Mohammed cartoons of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten appeared and triggered one of the biggest foreign policy crises in the country. Even today, Denmark still struggles to deal with the images. By J. Sinram.
History Today: How a Danish newspaper stirred a row with Prophet Muhammad cartoons
On September 30, 2005, Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published a series of controversial cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad. This angered Muslims the world over, leading to a wave of protests, especially in West Asian countries. On this day in 1954, the USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine, was officially commissioned into the US Navy
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