Nearly two weeks ago, tens of thousands of people participated in the Everybody Draw Muhammad Day event in defense of free speech. As you can imagine, most Muslims found this offensive. Several Muslim countries responded to the controversy by boycotting or banning Facebook. Other Muslims used Facebook as the medium through which to express their disagreement with Everybody Draw Muhammad Day. One popular Muslim response is the event Everybody Draw Holocaust Day set for June 30, 2010. The event has nearly 1,400 Facebook “fans”—many of them Muslims from the United States and Western Europe.

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Yesterday, I wrote about Paul Kurtz and his objections to “Blasphemy Day.” I assume Kurtz would also balk as the blasphemy being exercised today, “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day.” The event was started on Facebook in response to Comedy Central’s censorship of and Islamic threats against South Park. The event has over 80,000 confirmed participants on Facebook and has received national media coverage. “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day” has become so large in fact that Pakistan found it necessary to temporarily ban Facebook.

My take on the controversy: I enjoy slaughtering sacred cows. Not because I like to needlessly offend people, but rather because I like breaking taboos of all sorts. People just need to take themselves less seriously.

That said, when I do blaspheme, I try to make it constructive. And I rather doubt that “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day” will be constructive. It could be, but it won’t be—not the way that most people will practice it. The event will be used as an excuse by some to trade in malicious stereotypes about Muslims. Consequently, prominent secular humanists and cartoonists—groups otherwise very supportive of free speech—are against “Everybody Draw Muhammad Day.”

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