Lars Vilks in North America
PHILADELPHIA
Thursday, September 30, 2010, from 11:30am to 2:00 pmAt the Union League Club, 140 S. Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19102
OTTAWA
Saturday, October 2, 2010 at 7:00 pmAt the Montgomery Legion Hall 330, Kent Street Ottawa (Basement Auditorium)
TORONTO
Sunday, October 3, 2010, at 7:00 pmAt The Toronto Zionist Centre 788 Marlee Avenue, Toronto, M6B-3K1 (Marlee and Lawrence)
BOSTON
Monday, October 4, 2010, at 7:30 pmLocation To Be Announced
FOR MORE INFO AND TO REGISTER, GO TO EVENT WEBSITE HERE
Lars Vilks, of Sweden, is an academically trained art theorist having earned a PhD in art history from Lund University in 1987. In 1988 he moved to Norway and worked at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts until 1993. From 1997 to 2003, he was a professor in art theory at the Bergen National Academy of the Arts. A self-taught artist and mostly an outsider in the Swedish art scene, he creates various types of art ranging from sculptures and paintings to drawings. When his work is discussed by media and art world insiders, it is seen as deliberately provocative.
He has described himself as an equal opportunity critic of religion having criticized all religions in one way or another in his work but in 2007, he crossed the rubicon when he produced a series of drawings depicting the prophet Mohammad as a roundabout dog.
Since that time, he has received death threats, protests have occurred during his speaking engagements, his home was the site of an arson attempt and authorities discovered an international plot to murder him. The revelation of Philadelphia’s own Jihad-Jane’s assassination plot against Vilks in October 2009 leaves no doubt that his life is threatened. And for what? For having drawn a picture!
Here is the real state of law and order throughout the West: If you write, say or draw anything the Islamic fanatics don’t like, they’ll come and kill you. The list of writers, artists, publishers, gallery owners and others that are being openly threatened with murder is long and getting longer by the day.
Deplorably, free spirits often lack the support of their professional colleagues and the mainstream media when they are being targeted. This was the case when a madman with an axe tried to kill the Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard in early January 2010. Now we see a repetition with Lars Vilks.
The International Free Press Society (IFPS) will do its utmost to defend anyone that is persecuted and tormented for exercising his or her right of free speech and has made September 30th (anniversary of the Danish cartoon affair), International Free Press Day.
Last year, we honoured Kurt Westergaard and brought him to North America to tell his story. This year IFPS is proud to honour Lars Vilks as our International Free Press Day Artist.
We have planned several speaking engagements and media appearances in the U.S. and Canada for Mr. Vilks and will use this opportunity to make people aware of this threat to our most fundamental freedom – Freedom of Speech.
We invite all those concerned about the state of our liberties to come stand with us and Mr. Vilks in defense of our freedom.
Lars Hedegaard, born 1942, is a Danish citizen and President of The Free Press Society, a grass-roots organization formed in 2004 to defend free speech. A graduate in history and English from the universities of Aarhus and Copenhagen, he has been a lecturer, publisher, editor, journalist and author of several books on 20th century world history and Islamic affairs. 1975-80 he worked as a book editor in Beverly Hills, California.
In the 1990s he became chief editor of the Copenhagen daily, Information, and subsequently a commentator with two conservative newspapers in the Danish capital. In recent years he has divided his time between work for The Free Press Society and book-writing.
Don’t miss Lars Vilks on the Michael Coren Show.
Friday, October 1st, 2010
THE MICHAEL COREN SHOW, Weekdays at 6pm, repeated at 12.30pm.
Cable 9, Toronto, Cable 25, Ottawa, Cable 16, London, Cable 51, Calgary,
Cable 51, Edmonton
Various local cable companies elsewhere. Nationwide on Digital and satellite
651 Bell
355 Star Choice
