And what about critical thinking!

On Wednesday 7th January 2015, France is plunged into mourning by a dramatic event. A group of fanatics massacred Charlie Hebdo’s editing team as a way to avenge the Prophet Mahomet’s honour. A wave of support unfurled in the name of freedom, promoted by artists and journalists from the entire world.

This drama goes beyond Charlie Hebdo and freedom of expression. Following the same direction than journalists and citizens, we, ArkéoTopia, as a scientific research organization, felt also deeply concerned as well as, certainly, many other researchers in the world.

If today the media seems to be the only one concerned by the freedom of expression, we would like to remind you that not only this right applies to everyone, but also that the motivations of this Wednesday’s terrorist assault threatens other sorts of freedom.

Yes, the media‘s freedom of expression must be defended, but we must also protect one of the essential parts of our future: the freedom for research which is as much concerned by this murderous assault.

Flouting the freedom of expression necessarily means to flout the freedom for research, because it prevents calling into question and, consequently, suppresses critical thinking.

Yes, #IamCharlie! Yes, #WeAreCharlie! But let us not forget that it is first about defending this freedom for critical thinking which is responsible for producing the essential innovation to prepare tomorrow, by facilitating our living together in spite of our differences.

Journalists, scientists, philosophers, artists, citizens… we must all stand up to fundamentalism that leads to obscurantism, religious or not, while respecting the need for spirituality and thinking specific to each one of us.

Beyond the media’s freedom of expression, we must not take part in the wrong fight: let us defend the freedom of expression, essential to critical thinking.