A Teddy Bear Jihad!

Gillian Gibbons must be scared and feeling alone in her prison cell in Sudan. Wanting to help those in need, Ms. Gibbons left the safety of her home in England to become a teacher at Unity High School. But today she sits in prison while thousands of Muslims are calling for her execution. And what evil crime did she commit…murder, child molestation? No, she committed an affront to Allah by allowing her students to name a teddy bear “Muhammad:”

Muhammad the Pooh

One only needs to read the quotes from those who refuse to show any compassion or tolerance towards Ms. Gibbons to understand the absurdity of the situation:

"No tolerance: Execution," and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad." – Chants heard by protesters outside Gibbon’s prison cell.
"Imprisoning this lady does not satisfy the thirst of Muslims in Sudan. "This an arrogant woman who came to our country, cashing her salary in dollars, teaching our children hatred of our Prophet Muhammad," But we welcome imprisonment and expulsion." the cleric, Abdul-Jalil Nazeer al-Karouri told worshippers.

Her students chose from several names and voted to use Muhammad, the most popular boys name in the Muslim culture. The atrocity was reported to the authorities by a fellow teacher. Why did this fellow teacher not educate Ms. Gibbons that simply naming a toy after the Prophet might be considered insulting?

Ms. Gibbon’s was sentenced to 15 days in prison, and upon her release, deportation (which I am sure she will welcome). But Ms. Gibbons is not the only victim in this travesty. The students are losing a dedicated, caring teacher, as well as learning an important lesson about their religion. That lesson is that there are some Muslims who have perverted the Islamic religion so much that a person could face harsh punishment, or even death, for naming a teddy bear Muhammad. How the students choose to use this lesson rest with them.