MADISON (AP)–The University of Wisconsin-Madison chancellor says a campus paper was justified in reprinting a cartoon depicting a Muslim religious figure, but he called upon the paper to address the indignation of Muslim students on campus concerning the matter.
The cartoon, which depicts Prophet Muhammad wearing a turban shaped like a bomb with a lit fuse, was among several images of the prophet that touched off violence in the Muslim world after the drawings were printed in Danish newspapers.
The Badger Herald reprinted the image Monday, saying the international reaction to the cartoon made it newsworthy.
Herald officials said the paper printed it as a commitment to freedom of expression and not to offend Muslim students.
But Mir Babar Basir, president of the school's Muslim Students' Association, called the decision to run the cartoons "pure racism" and his organization complained to university officials.
Chancellor John Wiley defended Tuesday the newspaper's right to print the image but called in a statement for the paper's editorial board to "respond to the indignation and revulsion expressed by those most personally affected."
Members of the Muslim association and Badger Herald staff plan to discuss the issue at a forum next week, Basir said.
