When I considered what the satyrical magazine Charlie Hebdo and its cartoonists represent, this Jester kept popping to my mind.

The Jester, or its twin the Fool, is at the same time impertinent and appropriate, amusing and vexing, sane and crazy.

He is the one singularity in society who is despisingly cast at the lowest rung and denied any social status save as "souffre-douleur" (the one you can bully whenever you need someone to vent on). The very fact he is nothing and represents no threat to the social status of others frees the Jester who has nothing to lose and is allowed every impertinence, his satires passing for fruits of insanity. For who else but a madman would so openly and radically challenge what every and any member of society so instinctively, naturally, necessarily... sanely accepts as undeniable truth.

That Fool is a fundamental aspect of France, whether as a real character at court -wittingly as assigned jester or unwittingly through the social art of ridicule, of French culture -in puppet theater or in litterature.

He is Molière for Louis XiV, he is Candide for Voltaire, he is Descartes who adamantly refuses to consider the least fact to be true until it has been rationally proven.

That Fool is typical of a key component of French mentality : he questions authority lest those in power forget it should be deserved; refuses to accept things that are so as to always keep an eye on what might/could be; mistrusts common opinion as the result of inertia and comfort; challenges any individual's opinions in search of proof of thought.

Charlie Hebdo has embodied this paranoid genius for decades and has been attacked for it. We are long going to miss those they've killed, but the Jester has been here for centuries and will live on for many more.

Quartz' presentation of French cartooning tradition

Cagle's presentation of French cartooning tradition

six pictures meant as a film!

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

Unity Walk from Portsmouth Guildhall Square to The War Memorial, Southsea.

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

We Won't Forget

Mulhouse - 11 janvier 2015

Metz,le 11/01/2015.

The pencil is mightier than the rocket launcher

Rassemblement NousSommesCharlie Bastille Paris 11janvier2015

En mémoire des victimes de la tuerie du 7 janvier 2014 chez Charlie Hebdo et contre tous les amalgames, pour la paix, pour la république.

#JesuisCharlie #Hommageauxvictimes #Republique

©Tous Droits Réservés Jennifer Sampieri Photographies

jennifersampieri.wordpress.com

Just before lunch time, 3 gunmen killed 12 people in Paris mainly working for a satirical magazine called "Charlie Hedbo". In the evening several spontaneous silent meetings took place in several cities in France like in Reims.

* * * * * *

Un peu avant midi des hommes lourdement armés ont tué 12 personnes travaillant principalement pour le journal satyrique Charlie Hebdo, Dans la soirée de nombreux rassemblements ont pris part un peu partout en france comme a Reims ou j'habite.

In a world where not all enjoy the same freedom

no one is free.

Je suis Ahmed

#JeSuisCharlie

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

www.52moments.eu

“Because," explained Mary Rommely simply, "the child must have a valuable thing which is called imagination. The child must have a secret world in which live things that never were. It is necessary that she believe. She must start out by believing in things not of this world. Then when the world becomes too ugly for living in, the child can reach back and live in her imagination. I, myself, even in this day and at my age, have great need of recalling the miraculous lives of the Saints and the great miracles that have come to pass on earth. Only by having these things in my mind can I live beyond what I have to live for.”

― Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

marche républicaine

#Jesuischarlie

twitter.com/hashtag/JeSuisAhmed?src=hash

Je suis Charlie - Nous sommes tous Charlie

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel

Vive la liberté!!!

Je suis libre de penser

Je suis libre de tolérer

Je suis libre de caricaturer

twitter.com/hashtag/CharlieHebdo?src=hash

www.charliehebdo.fr/index.html

Ich bin Charlie

I'm Charlie

Je suis Charlie

من چارلی هستم

Soy Charlie

Sono Charlie

Eu sou Charlie

Я Чарли

Аз съм Чарли

Jeg er Charlie

ကျွန်မချာလီရယ်

Ndine Charlie

Mi Charlie

Ma olen Charlie

Olen Charlie

Eu son Charlie

მე ჩარლი

Είμαι ο Τσάρλι

Mwen se Charlie

मैं चार्ली हूँ

Aku Charlie

Tá mé Charlie

Ég er Charlie

私はチャーリーだ

我是查理

我是查理

ನಾನು ಚಾರ್ಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯ

Мен Чарли қалдым

ខ្ញុំជាកីឡាករ Charlie

찰리 해요

Ja sam Charlie

Es esmu Charlie

Aš Čarlis

ഞാൻ ചാർളി സുഖമാണ്

Izaho Charlie

Saya Charlie

Au Charlie ahau

Ik ben Charlie

Jeg er Charlie

Jestem Charlie

Ja som Charlie

أنا تشارلي

Aku Charlie

איך בין טשאַרלי

ฉันชาร์ลี

Ben Charlie

Paris place de la Republique 11 janvier 2015

In support of Artists, Journalists, Police and Others murdered and injured in Paris, Wednesday, January 7, 2015. Thierry Puget created the #JeSuisCharlie and Joachim Roncin, the artistic director and music journalist for Stylist magazine, designed the simple Logo.

Never cower or bow to the whims of religious extremists! They are cowards and their faith is weak. Especially if it is threatened by nothing more than a cartoon.

Ne jamais trembler ou se plier aux caprices des extrémistes religieux! Ils sont lâches et leur foi est faible. Surtout si elle est menacée par rien de plus qu'une bande dessinée.

Belmont, CA (USA)

01.07.15

Rassemblement du 11/01/2015 à Paris, pour Charlie Hebdo et chaque personnes tués lors de ces attaques.

Un événement tristement exceptionnel ...

United Rally DC #jesuischarlie

Je Suis Charlie.