Saturday, January 9, 2010
The Free Expression Cartoon Contest
"A Message from the Executive Director
Tom Flynn
You've probably heard of the craven attempt on the life of Danish editorial cartoonist Kurt Westergaard. He and his grandchild were attacked in his home by a Somali assailant who was shot by police and now faces criminal proceedings. Westergaard drew the best-known of the 2005 "Muhammad" cartoons that appeared in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten and inflamed radical Muslim anger worldwide. You've seen it: it's the cartoon showing an angry-looking bearded Muslim man whose turban is a bomb with a lighted fuse. Is it Muhammad or just a representation of a generic jihadist? No one knows, and outraged Islamists don't care. They just condemn it as "blasphemy" and have launched several attempts to assassinate Mr. Westergaard over the years. (No, this was not the first.)
Let's be clear what we're not looking for.This event simply underscores the necessity for secular humanist activists and organizations to stand foursquare in defense of free expression...in defense of the right to criticize religion through argument and art...and even in defense of the right to blaspheme.
That's why the Council for Secular Humanism is sponsoring a Free Expression Cartoon Contest. We're doing it in cooperation with the Center for Inquiry's Campaign for Free Expression. For another week and a half, the Council invites professional and amateur artists to submit their sharpest, cleverest, and most ingenious creations touching on that most sensitive subject: religion. (Though secular humanism is not a religion, cartoons about secular humanists and other activists who live without religion are welcome, too.)
We're not looking for cartoons that crudely mock a particular faith or engage in sacrilege for the fun of it. A well-conceived cartoon can do so much more than that. We're looking for sophisticated, hard-hitting ideas and images that pose serious questions about belief and disbelief -- cartoons that prod readers to think as they laugh (or maybe, cry).
How to Enter...and Win!
The Free Expression Cartoon Contest is two contests in one. Amateur cartoonists (anyone who doesn't get a regular paycheck to draw cartoons) can compete for prizes of $300 (grand prize), $125 (second prize), and $75 (third prize). In addition, the three winning entries will be published in Free Inquiry and on the Council for Secular Humanism and Center for Inquiry Web sites. Professional cartoonists will compete for grander prizes of $2500 (grand prize), $1250 (second prize), and $750 (third prize). Winning pro entries will also be published in Free Inquiry and online.
Entries will be judged by a panel of volunteer judges led by Steve Benson, award-winning atheist cartoonist for the Arizona Republic. Entries must be received no later than Friday, January 15, 2010. Winners will be announced on Monday, March 29, 2010 -- just in time for Easter!
This contest is supported by a generous grant from the Andrew Norman Foundation.
Hardcopy entries should be sent to:
Cartoon Contest
P.O. Box 664
Amherst, NY 14226-0664
Online entries should be sent to:
Documentaries on Religion and Politics
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Zizek vs. Alex Callinicos - What does it mean to be a revolutionary today?
Monday, October 12, 2009
Top ten proofs for God's existence...
Science, Mathematics, Physics, and Historical Evidence,
but in simple layman's terms and easy to understand language."
Sunday, October 4, 2009
The Scripture Project
Friday, October 2, 2009
Why We Fight & The Corporation
I usually blog about atheism and religion but Ii am also very interested in anti-globalization movement. These are two really influential documentaries about the American Empire and corporations. You may think "this topic is not new, we already know that corporations control the whole system on the world", but these two documentaries encourage you to go out and do something.
Why we fight (2005) - Eugene Jarecki : http://www.sonyclassics.com/whywefight/
This 2005 documentary does a great job to clarify the reasons why the USA is in Iraq and why "fighting" is a must for the American Empire. Also don't miss the study guide which is a short-book about the historical details of American urge for blood:
http://www.sonyclassics.com/whywefight/download/WhyWeFight-StudyGuide-Sony.pdf?hs317=WhyWeFightSPHE+StudyGuide
The Corporation (2003) - written by Joel Bakan, and directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott : http://www.thecorporation.com/
A truly great documentary about how evil the corporate system is. The most surprising part was that corporate people have no idea about the impact they do on the lives of third world peoples.
The website is also very good. you can watch educational videos about the system. The huge irony is you can download the movie from "iTunes". iTunes???? Come on!