Voices Of The Week: The 'Grim Reality' Of The Paris Attack

Transcript

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Last week's tragedy inspired a larger debate about freedom of speech and the future of Islam. In a moment, we'll hear from one outspoken advocate for reform. But first, a few perspectives from the past week.

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CONAN O'BRIEN: In this country, we just take it for granted that it's our right to poke fun at the untouchable or the sacred. But today's tragedy in Paris reminds us very viscerally that it's a right some people are inexplicably forced to die for.

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IMAM ANJEM CHOUDARY: Many right-wing organizations are now allowed to espouse their own anti-Islamic, you know, ideas very openly. And if we could have a government in places like France, which are very anti-Islam and anti-Muslims.

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AYAAN HIRSI ALI: But the most important bit of it is to face the grim reality that this is embedded in the religion that we were brought up in.

MARTIN: We just heard the voices of Conan O'Brien, Imam Anjem Choudary and Somali-born writer Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.