Shahid Mahmood (cartoonist)

Shahid Mahmood
Born Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Alma mater Carleton University
McGill University
Occupation Editorial cartoonist
Website www.drawnconclusions.com

Shahid Mahmood is a Canadian architect and cartoonist of Pakistani descent.

Early life

Shahid was born in Toronto, Canada[1] and spent his childhood and teenage years in Pakistan,[2] attending schools in Lahore and Karachi. Early in his career, he drew political cartoons for the Pakistani publications Star, Dawn, and Newsline Magazine. After graduation he studied architecture in Canada,[3] attending both Carleton and McGill University. Shahid’s cartoons focus largely on religion and politics, with his critiques targeting both Islamic fundamentalism and the aggressiveness of US foreign policy.[4] Over the years, he has received threats to his well being from groups ranging from the Taliban to various government officials.[5]

Career

His cartoons were a part of the exhibition showing at the 1997 APEC Conference.[6] Following the 9/11 Attacks, Shahid exhibited work at the Paris exhibition The New World Order.[4] In 2002 his exhibition Enduring Operation Freedom, criticizing the Bush policies in Afghanistan, resulted in the McMaster Museum of Art in Canada shutting down the event.[3][7] While working in Pakistan, Shahid faced repeated attempts at censorship by the government of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto,[8] who was featured in several of Shahid’s works.[7] His cartoons have been preserved in various institutions including the Museum of Contemporary History in Paris.[6] He has published his work in publications including The Huffington Post, The Guardian, The Express Tribune, Courrier International, and The New York Times Press Syndicate.[3] Shahid has commented on both the Jyllands-Posten cartoon controversy[9] and the related Charlie Hebdo aftermath.[4][7][10][11][12][13]

Censorship

Shahid is mentioned as being one of the first Canadians to be flagged on the US No Fly List.[14] The Canadian Parliament debated his story,[15] and in an open letter released by Amnesty International in December 2007 Shahid’s case was cited as a prime reason to implement the recommendations[16] made by the Arar Commission that advocate for balanced and transparent security measures in Canada.[17] Shahid claims that his criticisms of US foreign policy and military interventionism resulted in him being denied boarding to a domestic Air Canada flight[4] in 2004. Following this, he began to receive extra screening on a routine basis by airlines in many countries.[18] In 2009 a racial profiling complaint regarding the incident was argued in front of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.[19] In 2010 Shahid settled the case with Air Canada.[1] The short documentary, Listed narrates some of the details of this incident.[20]

In 2012 Shahid was again detained in the Santiago International Airport and interviewed by Interpol for 90 minutes, indicating he was still on a US government security list.[2] He was later assigned a specialized PIN from US Homeland Security to help deal with the appearance of his name on security lists.[21] Shahid has also received threats from Islamic fundamentalists for his works criticizing fundamentalism,[3] including an image of the Taliban depicted as an ape reading an upside-down Qur’an.[2] He has written and spoken[22] over the years on issues related to satire and censorship in newsprint, radio, and television.[21][23][24][25][26]

References

  1. 1 2 "Cartoonist who couldn't board flight settles with Air Canada - Toronto Star".
  2. 1 2 3 "Canadian editorial cartoonist just can't seem to get off no-fly list - Toronto Star".
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Amplifying the Ludicrous - Sampsonia Way Magazine".
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Pakistani Cartoonist on Charlie Hebdo, Satire and Islam - NBC News".
  5. ↑ Iacobucci, Edward M.; Toope, Stephen J. (7 April 2015). "After the Paris Attacks: Responses in Canada, Europe, and Around the Globe". University of Toronto Press – via Google Books.
  6. 1 2 "Harper and Malala".
  7. 1 2 3 "The trouble with the Charlie Hebdo drawings".
  8. ↑ "The Dream that was Benazir Bhutto".
  9. ↑ "The Cartoonist and the Pastor". 17 September 2010.
  10. ↑ "Charlie Hebdo controversial cartoon". 14 January 2015.
  11. ↑ cartoonist, Shahid Mahmood Editorial (9 January 2015). "Charlie Hebdo: What Offends Does Not Make It Factual".
  12. ↑ "Attack on Charlie Hebdo - Accuracy.Org".
  13. ↑ Iacobucci, Edward M.; Toope, Stephen J. (7 April 2015). "After the Paris Attacks: Responses in Canada, Europe, and Around the Globe". University of Toronto Press – via Google Books.
  14. ↑ "ICLMG Watch Lists Report - February 10, 2010".
  15. ↑ "Edited Hansard * Table of Contents * Number 078 (Official Version)".
  16. ↑ "CBC News In Depth: The Arar inquiry".
  17. ↑ "Open letter from Amnesty International Canada cites Benamar Benatta and Shahid Mahmood - Disability & Human Rights Law • BakerLaw". 13 December 2007.
  18. ↑ "Canada refuses to give answers about getting off no-fly list - Toronto Star".
  19. ↑ "Tribunal to probe Air Canada over boarding refusal".
  20. ↑ "Listed".
  21. 1 2 "Getting off a no-fly list: the never-ending saga".
  22. ↑ "Association Of Canadian Cartoonists/Association Des Caricaturistes Canadiens - Ryerson Journalism Research Centre".
  23. ↑ "KMEC 105.1 FM - Audio - Political Cartoonist Shahid Mahmood".
  24. ↑ "Feature Guest - Shahid Mahmood". 11 October 2010.
  25. ↑ "Episode for March 24, 2012". Masala Canada.
  26. ↑ Rocha, Leonardo. "BBC - World Service - World Have Your Say: What's wrong with immigration?".

External links

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