Terry Mosher cartoon fuels niqab controversy

A Muslim woman’s refusal to remove her veil in a French language class has caused a controversy in Canada. Adding fuel to the fire is a recent cartoon by Terry Mosher.

The controversy, which was sparked by a Muslim woman’s refusal in November to remove her veil in her French language class in Montreal, has been further inflamed by the controversial cartoon in the Montreal Gazette at the weekend. In the cartoon, a Muslim woman is depicted in niqab from top to toes, with the slit space for her eyes shown in jail bars and a lock.

Defending it, the cartoonist Terry Mosher said he drew it to oppose the Muslim woman’s argument in favour of the veil and encourage debate over the issue.

“In the (Montreal) Gazette this morning, there is actually an editorial in support of the woman, and yet my cartoon is against it. So that is part of the discussion and I think that’s a very healthy thing,” the cartoonist told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.