A British teacher at a high school in Sudan, Gillian Gibbons, 54, was arrested on blasphemy charges for allowing her six- and seven-year-old students to name a class teddy bear "Mohammed," says the Telegraph. She was interrogated for five hours, according to the Daily Mail, and the teacher now may face forty lashes and six months in prison. Protests against Ms. Gibbons, a divorced mother of two, have broken out all over Sudan and the school has been closed through January to prevent retaliation. On one hand, you want to say Ms. Gibbons should have known to avoid the name, especially given the recent Danish cartoon debacle, which resulted in dozens of deaths. The Koran say, "[Allah is] the originator of the heavens and the earth... [there is] nothing like a likeness of Him." The ban is supposed to prevent idolatry.
But it's hard to make a case the class' teddy bear project, which involved students taking "Mohammed" the bear home and recording his "activities" in a diary, could be construed as deliberately insulting.
Hassan Aberdeen, a researcher at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, quoted in Sky News, says that the anger over this does indeed seem to be disproportionate, even given Sudan's strict Islamic Sharia law. He says, "It seems that the parents made an issue of the teacher calling an animal Mohammed. Calling him a dog or a pig is insulting, but this is just a teddy bear."
And who would think the teddy bear (whose name was voted on by the class; Assan and Abdullah lost to Mohammed) was actually intended as a representation of the prophet? And who would imagine he would turn the students into teddy bear cultists?
It just seems like a logical fallacy to say that calling a teddy bear Mohammed is the same as calling Mohammed a teddy bear. After all, Muslim children are routinely named Mohammed; no one thinks they're being cast as reincarnations of the prophet.
In the case of the Danish cartoons, the image was actually supposed to represent the true Mohammed. Suddenly, by comparison to this, the rage over those little sketches seems imminently reasonable.
(Photo of Gibbons is from her Friends Reunited account via Reuters)
Reader Comments ( Page 6 of 43)
76. Brad, Now that was hilarious, true and hilarious..count my shoe in!
Sometimes this world just seems a little too scary for me...40 lashes?!!! Wow, you know times like this are the example of why we must must stay close to God and keep the world in our prayers!
NOTW at 1:32PM on Nov 27th 2007
77. We need to be equal and thus we need to flog all of those illegals that are contaminating our God fearing country. How dare they insult us by naming all their children Jesus. We are outraged and will not stand for it anymore. It's time to flog and stone to anyone that dares blaspheme the name of Jesus. (Just a comparison - not serious) Why do they get so outraged when we show our acceptance and kindness toward them.
Dennis at 2:19PM on Nov 27th 2007
78. MichaelGilbert; does that mean that Islam is not for you? heh heh...you closet-case HA!!
Mike G. at 1:36PM on Nov 27th 2007
79. I wish we would throw all the muslims, christians, jews and any others deluded by religion into the octagon. And the one thats left gets shot in the head.
The only way this world will have relative peace is to be secular in nature. Religion, all religions, poison everything.
Richard at 1:41PM on Nov 27th 2007
80. These Sudan officals are plain stupid. This explains their rediculous beliefs and devotion to medieval thought. The teacher was equally dumb for working in such a backward area of the uncivilized world.
derrick fleming at 1:34PM on Nov 27th 2007
81. the world has gone nuts and so have the people in it
john at 1:37PM on Nov 27th 2007
82. CHANGE THE NAME, THE BEAR DESERVES BETTER.
IRONBLUEEYES at 1:37PM on Nov 27th 2007
83. Iffff, anyone in the our sane society has seen a "Real" flogging (or caning), your mind will have this inhumane image scarred into your memory for life. Not to mention the life long torture this bares on the recipiant. I would not reccomend even watching this. It is worse than the beheading torture we have seen recently in the media.
F. Keith at 1:38PM on Nov 27th 2007
84. Do you think the Sudanese officials are overreacting?
Yes 97% 10,304
No 2% 210
I'm not sure 1% 117
Note on Poll Results
Total Votes: 10,631
gary pirkle at 1:37PM on Nov 27th 2007
85. Richard, "...secular in nature, huh? Once again, how very progressive of you. Liberal Arts major?
bellwells at 1:38PM on Nov 27th 2007
86. Richard (or is it Dick)
Move to the Middle East.
You write like a cowboy, but I bet you stayed home on draft day, girl.
Semper Fi
Mike Lawyer at 8:44PM on Nov 27th 2007
87. Charles,
You are the narrow minded one.
Your not making sense. You say this woman intended to insult an entire religion.
Are you mad? She was simply there to teach, and as the article clearly stated, the
CHILDREN named the bear not her. Whether she be Jewish, Christian , catholic,
Or atheist , it doesn’t matter. Not to mention, knowing about all the turmoil that
The middle east has been subject to, do you think, as a teacher, she would be
Stupid enough to put herself in danger by doing this on purpose? No , I really don’t think so. Not to mention, your just as bad as these idiots that hate Islam just because they don’t
Understand that every Muslim is not the same. You just spewed out your hatred
For Jews all over the place. Sara Silverman is not a sad excuse of a Jew,
She’s a sad excuse of a human being. I am Jewish, but I have nothing against
Muslims or any other religion for that matter, why? Because I was taught
That you judge people on an individual basis, not because of race or religion.
This woman deserves to be left alone, any one with a half a brain can see she
Has done nothing wrong.
MELISSA at 1:39PM on Nov 27th 2007
88. Sorry Susan,
your knowledge of history is very one sided. So what's new...As for Sarah Silverman she does a disservice to her community, I could be a fan, instead I see a pathetic self loathing self demeaning angry girl who under the pretense of being funny lashes out at christians in a country that has supported and helped the likes of her. Instead she pisses all over the turf that has helped her. pathetic, sad and disgusting.
Charles at 1:40PM on Nov 27th 2007
89. Show me a case where religion and it's crazy idolatries make any sense. I say ban religion and get rid of the whole damn problem.
Russ at 1:43PM on Nov 27th 2007
90. Again we have an so-called do-gooder individual working or vacationing in these radical islamic countrries that should have stayed home. Are teachers not need in the UK. Now she has gotton the whole world involved in her BS. STAY THE HELL HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tyrone Peters at 1:45PM on Nov 27th 2007