This past Saturday, Denmark’s Free Press Society celebrated Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks by awarding him their Freedom of Speech prize.
Vilks has long been an advocate for freedom of expression, and as such he has also been no stranger to numerous challenges that arise for those who work to keep speech free. From the recent attack at a Copenhagen cafe, where he was leading a discussion on art, free speech, and blasphemy to the multiple threats that he has endured since the publication of his controversial cartoons of Muhammad in the Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten in 2005, Vilks has remained a firm supporter of free speech and has continually worked to educate the world on why, especially in these times, we need to protect this fundamental right.
It is his “staunch fearlessness” that the Danish Free Press Society pointed out as they granted Vilks the award. And it is that fearlessness in the face of attacks and threats against free speech that will continue to drive the cartoonist to do his important work.
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Contributing Editor Caitlin McCabe is an independent comics scholar who loves a good pre-code horror comic and the opportunity to spread her knowledge of the industry to those looking for a great story!