This is an attack on freedom of expression

On Friday, August 12, 2022, a  24-year-old man attacked Indian-born British author Salman Rushdie. The actual motives of this attack are not clear, but it is not difficult to guess why Mr. Rushdie will be attacked. He is an author who has written some books that created controversy in the past. Especially, his book, The Satanic Verses, first published in 1988, created controversy, and some countries like Iran issued a fatwa for his death. Various people related to this book (translators of the book in different languages) have been already attacked in various countries. This display of religious rage and hate is not new, freedom of expression is not guaranteed in many countries, even in some so-called democracies, books are banned and authors are attacked for what they write. However, the attack on Rushdie happened in the USA, a country with one of the best freedom of protection laws. Therefore, the attack is not just on Mr. Rushdie, it is an attack on the USA's core spirit, and it should be treated as such.

Freedom of expression is not an easy pill to swallow for everyone. Most people want this right for themselves so that they can say what they feel, and criticize whoever they want, but are seldom happy when others practice it, especially to say offensive stuff. Hurting religious sentiments is a timid and often-used excuse to curb freedom of expression in many countries. This is such a lame excuse. Religion is a centuries-old institution, it has survived violent attacks from each other (one religion attacking another verbally as well as physically), so, how does one more book or a speech or movie or anything expressed by anyone matter? If religions are not able to tolerate a book, movie, or speech against it how strong it is in reality? These are the questions religious people need to ask themselves, maybe they will find this post itself offensive, you never know. If we are serious about freedom of expression, we need to defend books like The Satanic Verses and authors like Mr. Rushdie. The USA has one of the best freedom of expression laws, these laws make this a special place for many like me who want to express and appreciate the expression of others. Defending freedom of expression is not easy, especially when things are being said that are offensive to us, but that's when it matters the most. If people around us only express things that we like or agree to, do you think there will be a need to protect free speech? Our commitment to freedom of expression is tested when offensive things are being said and when something despicable is said about things we revere or respect. Otherwise, why do we need such right? 

Protecting and celebrating freedom of expression is as important as defending the freedom of a country. Without freedom of expression, there is no real freedom. It really doesn't matter how old or how big of a democracy you are, it doesn't matter how old or how liberal your history or culture is, if there is no freedom of expression, there is no freedom at all. The USA has benefitted a lot due to its strong policies to protect freedom of expression. If it fails to do so the effect will be disastrous. I hope the attack on Rushdie acts as a warning to America and it acts accordingly to protect its most valuable aspect.

Thank you for reading and please share your views on this topic.