Charlie Hebdo draws anger for Italian earthquake cartoon
Satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo has come under fire for a cartoon depicting victims of the Italian earthquake as pasta dishes.
Charlie Hebdo
Featured in its most recent issue, the controversial cartoon - ‘Earthquake Italian Style’ - shows a man and a woman standing next to a pile of rubble with feet buried beneath. Each of the figures has been named after a pasta dish, the man is ‘penne tomato sauce’, the woman ‘penne gratin’ and the bodies beneath the rubble ‘lasagne’.
Drawing criticism from Italian national newspapers La Stampa and Corriere della Serra, the cartoon has also been widely circulated on social media with users showing their distaste.
Now #CharlieHebdo, you've gone too far… @Charlie_Hebdo_ #ItalyEarthquake pic.twitter.com/JyloxJwN53 — Russian Market (@russian_market) 3 September 2016
Satire is often cruel, but it should poke fun at the strong, at institutions, never the victim, the vulnerable or weak. #CharlieHebdo
— Sally Lewis (@RslewisSally) 3 September 2016
#CharlieHebdo Mocking dead child refugees, religion or Italian victims of an earthquake isn't satire or freedom of speech. It's lazy hate. — Ramon Kaur (@RamonKaur) 2 September 2016
I agree with free speech but nobody can play with a whole country's pain. This is not the way, #CharlieHebdo! pic.twitter.com/3OHDbF8vUC
— Marc Serra (@MarcSerra21) 2 September 2016
Political satire it's one thing, but don't make fun of dead people #CharlieHebdo #Amatrice pic.twitter.com/jrxu9rohRo — Daniela Degrassi (@danieladegrassi) 2 September 2016
No stranger to controversy, in 2015 Charlie Hebdo attracted attention for a cartoon featuring young Syrian refugee Alan Kurdi who drowned whilst fleeing the country along with numerous controversies over images of the Prophet Muhammad.
In January last year the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris were attacked by an Islamist terrorist group leaving 11 people dead and more injured. The attack led to a global outpouring of support for the publication under the hashtag #JeSuisCharlie.