young people less and less tolerant of caricatures

On the occasion of the anniversary of the 2015 attacks, the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo a special issue is coming out this Tuesday with the publication of a survey on the evolution of French opinion regarding freedom of expression, satire and press cartoons. A fundamental right for 76% of those questioned. However, a third of young people under 35 support the idea that we cannot say and caricature anything under the guise of freedom of expression.

This Tuesday, France commemorates the 10th anniversary of the attacks of January 2015. 17 people were killed between January 7 and 9. On January 7, 2015, twelve people, including eight members of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdohad lost their lives in the attack on the newspaper by two terrorists who had pledged allegiance to Al-Qaeda.

The satirical newspaper publishes an Ifop survey in its columns this Tuesday. With this question: how has the opinion of the French evolved regarding freedom of expression in satire and press cartoons?

And 76% of us consider freedom of expression to be a fundamental right, which is 18 points more than in 2012. 62% of French people think that we can outrageously criticize a belief, a symbol or a religious dogma against 50% in 2020.

But behind these reassuring figures, there is a generational divide. A third of young people under 35 support the idea that we cannot say or caricature anything under the guise of freedom of expression, compared to only 21% of 35-64 year olds.

Samy has seen a lot of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad over the past 10 years, and for this student, a practicing Muslim, it is difficult to look at them.

“I don’t understand how we can still laugh about this when we freely make fun of this religion,” he believes.

Educational work to be done

An opinion that his friend, Hugo, does not completely share. “I don’t see why we can’t do it when freedom of expression allows us to do so. And then it’s a way of talking about things,” he says. But not enough to convince Samy. “What I don’t like in caricature is the moment when you want to laugh at it to the point of wanting to demean the thing in fact,” he insists.

Clara, 18, also shares this feeling that the caricatures go too far. “As a Christian, I find that there is a lot of blasphemy. These caricatures are truly shocking. This is something that should be limited,” she judges.

The reaction of this high school student does not surprise Charlotte Laizet, history teacher in Bordeaux.

“We actually feel some tension. They see it as something discriminatory, like a lack of respect. Our job is to create a dialogue that helps students evolve on these issues and it works well,” she says.

Since the attacks, the teacher has decided to continue showing Charlie Hebdo front pages to students, while ensuring that all religions are represented.