Drawing a limit on the freedom of expression? Charlie Hebdo, the French context and offensive speech
Kirstan McCartney · 2015
This thesis undertakes research on limitations to the right to freedom of expression. It considers possible legal and moral frameworks through which to ground a restriction on the right to freedom of expression based on religious offence. It will develop an argument to ground a moral restraint built from duties arising within tolerance, respect and recognition, and discourse ethics. This argument is then applied to the research’s case-study – the Charlie Hebdo attacks and controversy over the publication of allegedly offensive cartoons – in order to determine how the theory may apply in practice. The research and conclusions drawn are important due to the fact that the Charlie Hebdo controversy adds to an increasing list of multicultural conflicts – such as the Rushdie affair, the Danish cartoons affair, and the headscarf affair – between the freedom of expression and limitations grounded in religion belief and offence.