Illume – February 2, 2011
The French magazine, Respect Mag, initiated a rally in Place du Trocadéro, in Paris, to stand up against extremists who kill innocent people in the name of religion. About a 100 people, both Muslims and non-Muslims attended the demonstration. The rally follows the Appeal, “Islam flouted by terrorists” launched by Respect Mag on Jan. 12. The Appeal condemns violence committed ”in the name of Islam” and labels it as “the theft of the Muslim identity”.
The signatories include 70 French-Muslim personalities, as well as their co-religionist counterparts. This is the first initiative of its kind in France.
The Appeal was signed, among others, by representatives of associations, religious leaders, politicians, artists and intellectuals. Many of them attended the rally last Saturday, including the French rapper, Abdel Malik.
So far about 3,000 people have signed the text online. Respect Mag hopes that the Appeal will make people aware of the issue beyond the French borders. ”There are lot signatures from the Maghreb, Senegal, the United States and other European countries now. We are noticing that this Appeal echoes because the issue raised is universal. Today, people want to give life to their Muslim citizenship because people have been devastated by terrorism for so many years.” said Marc Cheb Sun, the chief editor of Respect Mag.
