Is the cross just 'bling'????
This story (from the UK) is upsetting in many ways....
A Government-funded charity was at the centre of a row last night after a magazine it publishes for children appeared to depict Christians as Islamaphobes who regard Muslims as terrorists.
In a cartoon strip, a boy wearing a large cross around his neck is shown telling a friend that a smiling Muslim girl in a veil looks like a terrorist.
He later confronts her and shouts: ‘Hey, whatever your name is, what are you hiding under your turban?’
She replies that the garment is called a hijab and it is part of her religion, ‘like that cross you wear’.
The girl is then shown standing up for another boy, who is being bullied, and her behaviour is contrasted with that of the boy wearing the cross.
The cartoon story, entitled Standing Up For What You Believe In, appears in the latest issue of Klic!, a quarterly magazine aimed at children in care aged from eight to 12.
Published by the Who Cares? Trust, a charity set up in 1992, it is described on the cover as ‘the best ever mag for kids in care’ and is widely distributed by town halls.
The charity received £100,000 from the Department for Children, Schools and Families, headed by Ed Balls, in both 2007 and 2008, and £80,000 this year.
Although the cartoon does not specifically refer to the boy’s religion, it has angered Christian groups and MPs who fear it sends out the wrong message.
Mike Judge, of the Christian Institute, said: ‘What about Christian children in care who received this magazine? How will they feel to see themselves mocked as narrow-minded Islamaphobes?
‘It is a clumsy caricature, symptomatic of a culture which says it is OK to bully Christians in the name of diversity.’
Philip Hollobone, the Tory MP for Kettering, said: ‘I think it is very unfortunate that the lad who is pointing the finger is wearing a cross.
'You can hardly imagine anyone producing a magazine in which the roles were reversed and it was the Muslim girl who was behaving badly.’
Gary Streeter, the Tory MP for South West Devon, said the religious parody was ‘unacceptable’, adding: ‘If it is being done with public money, it should be investigated and the magazine withdrawn.’
But Who Cares? Trust chief executive Natasha Finlayson said she had no intention of withdrawing it, describing the cross as ‘bling’ rather than a religious symbol.
posted by GayandRight @ 12:58 PM
3 Comments:
How can this woman say that the cross is just 'bling'and not a reference to religion when the cartoon girl states that the hijab is a sign of her religion 'just like the cross[the boy] is wearing'? Christians have long been pilloried; we live with ridicule, metaphorical pats on the head, blasphemous phrases and 'bling' crosses. However, I thank God that the cross, in reality, is far removed from bling; when the God of the cross loves and calls even those who mock and hate Him, they cannot resist giving their lives over to Him.
They can write and publish whatever they like, provided zero public money is used. Zero.
If they use funds from the public coffers, they should be completely non-religious.
Why are the people who claim tolerance, always the one’s who show the most intolerance?
mailbox@thewhocarestrust.org.uk
I suggest anybody who feels there's a double standard at play here contact the Trust and voice their displeasure. You might even get a form letter non-apology like the one I got!
RE: Spring 2009 Klic magazine
From: mailbox (mailbox@thewhocarestrust.org.uk)
Sent: April 6, 2009 2:52:21 PM
To: Olsen Pxxxxxxx (olsenpxxxxxxx@hotmail.com)
6th April 2009
Statement from The Who Cares? Trust about the cartoon strip in the spring edition of KLIC (Kids Living in Care)
The Who Cares? Trust, a UK charity working to improve the lives of children in care, publishes a quarterly magazine called KLIC (Kids Living in Care) for younger children in care. The spring edition of this magazine contained a two-page cartoon strip about bullying. The strip depicted incidents of bullying against a Muslim girl and a ginger-haired boy. Three boys were depicted as bullies, one of whom was wearing a cross. The cartoon strip was intended to convey two messages: that bullying is wrong and that it’s important to take a stand against bullying even when you feel reluctant to get involved.
We received a complaint from a Christian foster carer last month following distribution of the magazine to children in care. The complainant contacted the Mail on Sunday, which published an article about the cartoon strip on 5th April. Following publication of this article we have received a number of complaints from people who feel that the cartoon strip is insulting to Christians. We welcome feedback on our publications and will give serious consideration to the concerns that have been raised with us. The Trust is deeply sorry to have caused offence as nothing could have been further from our intentions.
From: Olsen Pxxxxxxx [mailto:olsenpxxxxxxx@hotmail.com]
Sent: 06 April 2009 13:01
To: mailbox
Subject: Spring 2009 Klic magazine
To whom it may concern,
Shame on you for publishing such a Christianophobe cartoon and not having the decency and common sense to apologize for it but to actually defend it. The comment by chief executive Natasha Finlayson " describing the cross as ‘bling’ rather than a religious symbol." is the most transparent, intellectually dishonest response I have ever heard.
Your own publication describes the cross as a religious symbol: "She replies that the garment is called a hijab and it is part of her religion, ‘like that cross you wear’." yet you ignore the obvious facts and deny it.
How can you look at yourself in the mirror Ms Finlayson?
Olsen Pxxxxxxx
Ottawa, Canada
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