Rikki Schlott
Role at the time: New York Post columnist, in an opinion column
Defended or excused
Response to this claim
Houellebecq's 2022 remarks about Muslims contain no exhortation, even implicit, and therefore fall within freedom of opinion and expression.
“The man who defends his nation's spirit and integrity is treated as a greater threat than the man who burns that culture to the ground.”
Read the original text (opens in a new tab)Rikki Schlott's New York Post column on France criminalizing critics of IslamFull column
Why we used this label
The reference point is Michel Houellebecq's November 2022 remarks about Muslims in Front Populaire, now under judicial investigation. Schlott treats the remarks as legitimate criticism of Islam and immigration and describes Houellebecq as a man who defends his nation's spirit, which defends them. She goes beyond disputing the incitement label, so challenges the characterization does not fit.