Messages of condolence, outrage and defiance over the Paris terrorist
attack on a newspaper office spread quickly around the world Wednesday
with thousands of people taking to the streets to protest the killings
and using the slogan "Je Suis Charlie" on social media.
Many who poured into Place de la Republique in eastern Paris near the
site of Wednesday's noontime attack waved papers, pencils and pens.
Journalists led the march but most in the crowd weren't from the media
world, expressing solidarity and support of freedom of speech.
Similar gatherings, including some silent vigils, took place at London's
Trafalgar Square, in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Amsterdam, in
Madrid, Brussels, Nice and elsewhere.
"No matter what a journalist or magazine has to say, even if it is not
what the majority of people think, they still have the right to say it
without feeling in danger, which is the case today," said Alice Blanc, a
London student who is originally from Paris and was among those in the
London crowd, estimated in the hundreds.
Online, the declaration "Je Suis Charlie," or "I Am Charlie," replaced
profile pictures on Facebook while Twitter users showed themselves with
the slogan on signs with words of support for the 12 victims who were
killed at Charlie Hebdo, a weekly newspaper that had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad.
The "Je Suis Charlie" slogan grew into a trending hashtag on Twitter and
spread to Instagram, along with an image of a machine gun with the
words "Ceci n'est pas une religion," or "This is not a religion."
One user on Instagram sent out a simple black-and-white drawing of the
Eiffel Tower with the message: "Pray for Paris." Another wrote: "Islam is a beautiful religion. This is not what we see on TV. Terrorists are not real Muslims. #IamCharlie."
Masked gunmen methodically killed the 12 people, including the
newspaper's editor, as they shouted "Allahu akbar!" ? or "Allah is the
greatest" ? while firing, then fleeing in a car.
Read more: 'Je Suis Charlie' Message Goes Viral After Paris Attack - ABC News
