The Westergaard cartoon was read as tying Muhammad and Islam to violence.

Evidence

The most controversial cartoon, submitted by Kurt Westergaard, depicted Muhammad wearing a turban containing a huge bomb. Inscribed on the bomb in Arabic was the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith: “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is His messenger.” Whatever Westergaard’s intentions, both critics and supporters of the Jyllands-Posten experiment interpreted the cartoon as associating Muhammad and thus Islam with violence. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 412

Categorization

• DEFINE: Explains the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith, which is load-bearing for understanding why the cartoon was so offensive.
• XREF: connects to: Majorities in Western countries blamed Muslims for the cartoon conflict. — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 419; The violence-of-Islam myth traces to the Crusades and shapes coverage of the Danish cartoons. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 193; Post-war Middle East events made violence central to US Muslim depictions — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 521

Broader Connections

• The violence-of-Islam myth traces to the Crusades and shapes coverage of the Danish cartoons. #expands (0.75) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 193
• Post-war Middle East events made violence central to US Muslim depictions #expands (0.55) — Green, Todd H, The Fear of Islam_ An Introduction to…, 521