• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
MENUMENU
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • FlaglerLive Board of Directors
    • Comment Policy
    • Mission Statement
    • Our Values
    • Privacy Policy
  • Live Calendar
  • Submit Obituary
  • Submit an Event
  • Support FlaglerLive
  • Advertise on FlaglerLive (386) 503-3808
  • Search Results

FlaglerLive

No Bull, no Fluff, No Smudges

MENUMENU
  • Flagler
    • Flagler County Commission
    • Beverly Beach
    • Economic Development Council
    • Flagler History
    • Mondex/Daytona North
    • The Hammock
    • Tourist Development Council
  • Palm Coast
    • Palm Coast City Council
    • Palm Coast Crime
  • Bunnell
    • Bunnell City Commission
    • Bunnell Crime
  • Flagler Beach
    • Flagler Beach City Commission
    • Flagler Beach Crime
  • Cops/Courts
    • Circuit & County Court
    • Florida Supreme Court
    • Federal Courts
    • Flagler 911
    • Fire House
    • Flagler County Sheriff
    • Flagler Jail Bookings
    • Traffic Accidents
  • Rights & Liberties
    • Fourth Amendment
    • First Amendment
    • Privacy
    • Second Amendment
    • Seventh Amendment
    • Sixth Amendment
    • Sunshine Law
    • Third Amendment
    • Religion & Beliefs
    • Human Rights
    • Immigration
    • Labor Rights
    • 14th Amendment
    • Civil Rights
  • Schools
    • Adult Education
    • Belle Terre Elementary
    • Buddy Taylor Middle
    • Bunnell Elementary
    • Charter Schools
    • Daytona State College
    • Flagler County School Board
    • Flagler Palm Coast High School
    • Higher Education
    • Imagine School
    • Indian Trails Middle
    • Matanzas High School
    • Old Kings Elementary
    • Rymfire Elementary
    • Stetson University
    • Wadsworth Elementary
    • University of Florida/Florida State
  • Economy
    • Jobs & Unemployment
    • Business & Economy
    • Development & Sprawl
    • Leisure & Tourism
    • Local Business
    • Local Media
    • Real Estate & Development
    • Taxes
  • Commentary
    • The Conversation
    • Pierre Tristam
    • Diane Roberts
    • Guest Columns
    • Byblos
    • Editor's Blog
  • Culture
    • African American Cultural Society
    • Arts in Palm Coast & Flagler
    • Books
    • City Repertory Theatre
    • Flagler Auditorium
    • Flagler Playhouse
    • Flagler Youth Orchestra
    • Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra
    • Palm Coast Arts Foundation
    • Special Events
  • Elections 2024
    • Amendments and Referendums
    • Presidential Election
    • Campaign Finance
    • City Elections
    • Congressional
    • Constitutionals
    • Courts
    • Governor
    • Polls
    • Voting Rights
  • Florida
    • Federal Politics
    • Florida History
    • Florida Legislature
    • Florida Legislature
    • Ron DeSantis
  • Health & Society
    • Flagler County Health Department
    • Ask the Doctor Column
    • Health Care
    • Health Care Business
    • Covid-19
    • Children and Families
    • Medicaid and Medicare
    • Mental Health
    • Poverty
    • Violence
  • All Else
    • Daily Briefing
    • Americana
    • Obituaries
    • News Briefs
    • Weather and Climate
    • Wildlife

Quran Burning and the Line Between Free Expression and Incitement of Hatred

September 4, 2023 | FlaglerLive | 6 Comments

Iraqis raise copies of the Quran during a protest in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of the holy book in Copenhagen.
Iraqis raise copies of the Quran during a protest in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of the holy book in Copenhagen. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

By Armin Langer

The Swedish government is concerned about national security following several incidents involving the burning of the Quran that have provoked demonstrations and outrage from Muslim-majority countries.




The spate of Quran-burning incidents followed an act of desecration by far-right activist Rasmus Paludan on Jan. 21, 2023, in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm. On Aug. 25, Denmark’s government said it would “criminalize” desecration of religious objects and moved a bill banning the burning of scriptures.

While freedom of expression is a fundamental human right in liberal democracies, the right to express one’s opinion can become complex when expressing one’s views clashes with the religious and cultural beliefs of others and when this rhetoric veers into hate speech.

As a scholar of European studies, I’m interested in how modern European societies are trying to navigate the fine line between freedom of expression and the need to prevent incitement of hatred; a few are introducing laws specifically addressing hate speech.

Death penalty for insulting God and church

Since medieval times, because of the dominant role of Christianity in political and cultural life, blasphemy against Christian beliefs in European countries was severely punished.




For instance, the Danish Code from 1683 punished people by cutting off their tongue, head or hands. Similarly, in Britain, both on the main island and in its overseas colonies, blasphemy was punished with executions. In 1636, English Puritan settlers in Massachusetts instituted the penalty of death for blasphemy.

For centuries, blasphemy laws were viewed by religious and civil leaders as safeguards for keeping society orderly and strengthening religious rules and influence. These laws showed how much power and influence religious groups wielded back then.

A black and white painting showing a church leader holding a crucifix and wood being piled up to burn a man, while a crowd looks on.
A painting showing a man being executed for heresy in July 1826.
(E)manccipa-Ment via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

During the Enlightenment, from the 1600s to the 1700s, religious institutions began losing power. Advocating for a strict separation of church and state, France became the first country to repeal its blasphemy law in 1881. Seven other European countries repealed their laws between the 1900s and 2000s, including Sweden and, more recently, Denmark.

European landscape of blasphemy laws

Several countries in Europe retain blasphemy laws, but their approaches are highly varied. Often the laws may not prevent present-day acts like dishonoring of religious texts.

In Russia, legislators introduced a federal law in 2013 criminalizing public insults of religious beliefs. This followed some provocative performances by the Moscow-based feminist protest art group Pussy Riot. One such protest, a “punk prayer,” in a Moscow cathedral in 2012 criticized the close ties between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Putin regime.

Since 1969, the German penal code has forbidden the public slander of religions and worldviews. While Germany rarely enforces this law, in 2006 an anti-Islam activist got a one-year suspended prison sentence for distributing toilet paper with the words “Quran, the Holy Quran” printed on it.




Austria and Switzerland have laws quite similar to Germany’s in this regard. In 2011, a person in Vienna was fined for calling the Islamic prophet Muhammad a pedophile. This case later went up to the European Court of Human Rights, which supported the Viennese court’s decision. The court said that the person wasn’t trying to have a useful discussion but instead just wanted to show that the prophet Muhammad shouldn’t be respected.

Spain, too, takes a strong stance against religious disrespect. Its penal code makes it a crime to publicly belittle religious beliefs, practices or ceremonies in a way that could hurt the feelings of followers. While Spain introduced this law to safeguard Catholic interests, it also covers religious minorities.

Italy, another Catholic-majority country, punishes acts deemed to be disrespectful to religions. Its penal code has been used to punish actions that insult Christianity. For example, in 2017 authorities charged an artist for depicting Jesus with an erect penis.

Contemporary debate

The Quran burnings in Sweden and Denmark, aren’t random – they’re part of a broader agenda of targeting Muslims that’s being pushed by far-right groups across Europe.

In many European countries, lawmakers and others are asking whether these book burnings should be seen as exercises of free expression or more as incitement based on religion.

A few countries are introducing new legislation to curb hate speech against religious communities. For example, in 2006 England got rid of the blasphemy law and introduced The Racial and Religious Hatred Act, which makes it an offense to stir up religious hatred. After repealing its blasphemy law in 2020, Ireland has been discussing the introduction of a hate speech law, which will criminalize any communication or behavior that is likely to incite violence or hatred.

Sweden passed a hate speech law in 1970 protecting racial, ethnic, religious and sexual minorities. Swedish authorities pointed to this legislation when they took action against a Quran-burning incident that occurred in front of a mosque in June 2023.




The police argued that the Quran burning wasn’t just about religion but specifically targeted the Muslim community. This was evident, according to the authorities, as the incident took place in front of a mosque during the Islamic holiday of Eid, setting it apart from other burnings that took place outside of the Swedish Royal Palace, the Turkish and Iraqi embassies and other public spaces. Because of the existing hate speech law focusing on incitement against minorities rather than religions, the activist received a fine from the police.

In recent weeks, some have called for a stricter application of the hate speech law and have demanded a ban on all Quran-burning events for implicitly inciting hatred against Muslims.

A global challenge

This discussion isn’t limited to Europe alone. Even in the U.S., there’s an ongoing debate about the boundaries of free speech. The First Amendment of the Constitution allows free speech, which some can interpret as the right to burn holy books.

Terry Jones, for instance, is a controversial Christian pastor from Florida. He organized Quran-burning events in Gainesville in 2011 and 2012. His only legal consequence was a US$271 fine from Gainesville Fire Rescue for not following fire safety rules.

Following Jones’ announcement that he was going to burn the Quran, President Barack Obama said that the pastor violated U.S. principles of religious tolerance. Legal scholar Jack Balkin recommended using free speech in promoting pluralist values to counter Jones’ hatred. Scholar of law and religion Jane Wise suggested that the U.S. could follow the English example by banning hate speech.

As societies change, I believe it has become important to recognize when freedom of speech has turned into promoting hatred. Figuring out where this boundary lies, understanding the standards applied and uncovering potential biases can spark important conversations. While a solution that applies to every single country may not exist, it’s essential to engage in this dialogue, recognizing its complexity and the varying perspectives across societies.

Armin Langer is Assistant Professor of European Studies at the University of Florida.

The Conversation arose out of deep-seated concerns for the fading quality of our public discourse and recognition of the vital role that academic experts could play in the public arena. Information has always been essential to democracy. It’s a societal good, like clean water. But many now find it difficult to put their trust in the media and experts who have spent years researching a topic. Instead, they listen to those who have the loudest voices. Those uninformed views are amplified by social media networks that reward those who spark outrage instead of insight or thoughtful discussion. The Conversation seeks to be part of the solution to this problem, to raise up the voices of true experts and to make their knowledge available to everyone. The Conversation publishes nightly at 9 p.m. on FlaglerLive.
See the Full Conversation Archives
Support FlaglerLive's End of Year Fundraiser
Thank you readers for getting us to--and past--our year-end fund-raising goal yet again. It’s a bracing way to mark our 15th year at FlaglerLive. Our donors are just a fraction of the 25,000 readers who seek us out for the best-reported, most timely, trustworthy, and independent local news site anywhere, without paywall. FlaglerLive is free. Fighting misinformation and keeping democracy in the sunshine 365/7/24 isn’t free. Take a brief moment, become a champion of fearless, enlightening journalism. Any amount helps. We’re a 501(c)(3) non-profit news organization. Donations are tax deductible.  
You may donate openly or anonymously.
We like Zeffy (no fees), but if you prefer to use PayPal, click here.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. JimboXYZ says

    September 4, 2023 at 10:39 pm

    Imagine having the time ($ resources) to waste burning a book ? Just don’t buy it, it’s not hurting anyone when it’s not in your home. One doesn’t even need to check the book out at the library, just sits there collecting dust. Most of it is life’s advices that anyone passes down generation to generation. In that regard take what you want from it & live a better life as a human being either way. They all have something good to take from any of them. What you don’t agree with purge that from your head.

  2. Pogo says

    September 4, 2023 at 11:18 pm

    @FWIW

    The world would be happier if men had the same capacity to be silent that they have to speak.
    — Benedict de Spinoza: Ethics

  3. R.S. says

    September 5, 2023 at 12:56 pm

    I wonder what would happen if someone around here were to engage in bible burning well advertised and in a public place? It seems rather pointless to do so because burning books does not dismantle the ideas in those books. But it’s also quite pointless to get in a rage about having so-called holy writ dismantled by fire or otherwise. If the deity that cares about the books needs to fight for their retention, is that deity really not strong enough to engage with the folks who burn his/her/its holy writ? If any religionist needs to fight for his/her deity to survive, that religionist would be better of giving up that deity for it is clearly too weak to fight its own battles.

  4. ASF says

    September 5, 2023 at 4:17 pm

    Christian Bibles and Torahs are also being burned. If one religious sects’ holy books are to be protected, they should all be protected, equally.

  5. DaleL says

    September 6, 2023 at 7:39 am

    If a person publicly claimed they are burning a copy of a Bible, Torah, or Quran, but instead burned a dictionary, would that be a hateful act? How does a purported book burning in Sweden affect anybody in Iraq? There are 13 countries in the world today in which being an Atheist is punishable by death. They are all Muslim majority countries. Real religious tolerance (free speech) includes the right to burn your own property (book) in a manner allowed by law. Even if that property is a copy of a Bible, Torah, Quran, Harry Potter, or On the Origin of Species.

    It just amazes me how all these people who claim to be so religious can get so offended by people who find their particular religion or all religions to be nonsense.

  6. R.S. says

    September 6, 2023 at 8:31 pm

    Try flag! Same scenario!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Conner Bosch law attorneys lawyers offices palm coast flagler county
  • grand living realty
  • politis matovina attorneys for justice personal injury law auto truck accidents

Primary Sidebar

  • grand living realty
  • politis matovina attorneys for justice personal injury law auto truck accidents

Recent Comments

  • FlaglerLive on Flagler Beach Centennial Community Dinner’s Ticket Deadline Is Friday
  • Bo Peep on Federal Judge Hears Challenge to Florida’s Law Sharply Restricting Ballot Initiatives
  • Jim on An Ugly Town Meeting in Marineland as Questions Hang Over Legality of Mayor’s Unilateral Appointment of a Commissioner
  • Jim on Palm Coast City Attorney Calls Mayor Norris ‘Unprofessional and Inappropriate’ 3 Weeks After Censure for Similar Behavior
  • attentive reader on Flagler Beach Centennial Community Dinner’s Ticket Deadline Is Friday
  • Not so fast.... on Margaritaville’s Compass Hotel in Flagler Beach Opens in Buffett-Themed Celebration of a Downtown Remade
  • Pogo on The Daily Cartoon and Live Briefing: Friday, May 23, 2025
  • Pogo on Federal Judge Hears Challenge to Florida’s Law Sharply Restricting Ballot Initiatives
  • Pogo on Israel’s Catastrophic Starvation of Gaza’s Millions
  • Pogo on Afrikaners are South African Opportunists, Not Refugees
  • Justbob on Palm Coast City Attorney Calls Mayor Norris ‘Unprofessional and Inappropriate’ 3 Weeks After Censure for Similar Behavior
  • D W Ferguson on Palm Coast City Attorney Calls Mayor Norris ‘Unprofessional and Inappropriate’ 3 Weeks After Censure for Similar Behavior
  • Pig Farmer on Palm Coast’s Golden Chopsticks Buffet Open Again 2 Days After Sanitation Inspection Ordered It Closed
  • Deborah Coffey on Federal Judge Hears Challenge to Florida’s Law Sharply Restricting Ballot Initiatives
  • Greg on Palm Coast City Attorney Calls Mayor Norris ‘Unprofessional and Inappropriate’ 3 Weeks After Censure for Similar Behavior
  • SleepTech on Palm Coast City Attorney Calls Mayor Norris ‘Unprofessional and Inappropriate’ 3 Weeks After Censure for Similar Behavior

Log in