For information on stopping the spread of COVID-19, and on what to do if you are quarantined, have a look at the World Health Organization site.
So you'd have to be blind, willfully or otherwise, to not see or know what is going on in the United States at the moment. Sorry, not at the moment - basically since its inception. In the years since the ascendancy of the Trump presidency, the precarious position of People of Colour in the U.S. has never been more on display to the world, and to the citizens whom it affects.
A lot of the rhetoric I'm seeing from white people about the rioting and unrest in the U.S. is either whining about how bad things are, or asking POC "what can I do, I don't understand." And the most common response is that we educate ourselves and stop leaning on the very people this cultural disparity is impacting to either help us understand or assuage our "white guilt." The former is vital, the latter a deep insult. As allies, or comrades as I prefer, we need to understand that our place in this struggle is to stand behind those on the front lines and say "I've got your back, I am 100% in support of you, but I will not supplant you." One of the best ways I've read of to do that is to make sure that the cultural contributions, the importance of POC in the Western world, is plain and clear for all to see.
A few years back I had a similar notion, in the wake of yet another racially-motivated killing, and I made the effort to post about comics with Black creators. I'm going to do this again. Yes, it's repeating myself, but it's also one of the few ways that I know I'm qualified to help, as much as this might help, in combating the horrendous waves of racially-motivated violence that seem to be sweeping across the planet. I'm going to start with Black creators for a while, but then I'm going to move on to creators from other visible, and sometimes not, minority groups. It's important that we recognize that though it often looks like it, the Western world was not constructed by white people alone, nor should it be a haven solely for them.
So let's get started, shall we?
The first thing I ought to say is that just because I'm highlighting these comics in support of what is perhaps one of the greatest and most necessary cultural revolutions to be waaaayyy overdue, it doesn't mean that I'm going to simply offer glowing reviews. Some of these comics, I'm sure, will not be my cup of tea, and I feel that I have to be objective about that, despite my previously-stated goal of celebrating the contributions of Black creators. Not all comics are good ones, regardless of who creates them. (Oh, and I'm doing them alphabetically, so that no creator seems to be prioritized.)
I'm torn about Mario Gully's Ant. I read a bit of the back story, and it actually seems to be a neat consideration of escaping into fantasy, and perhaps also of mental illness, using the superhero as a way out of a difficult situation. What I glean is that Ant herself is a fantasy concocted by a young African American girl whose living conditions are, as they are for many young POC, deplorable.
There's some problems with the book, as(s) you can probably tell from that cover. It's very "fan-servicey," though only having one issue of the series, I don't know if that's something that is ever addressed. But there's one really important thing about this series that I really think Mr. Gully himself should let you know. From Newsarama:
“I was convicted of robbery and sentenced to one year and probation.
The event was a turning point in my life. I used to draw portraits and
hot chicks on envelopes for commissary. One day around day #6 of 358, I
was depressed about where my choices in life put me. I was looking out
the barred window and a single ant crawled in from the outside of my
window seal. I said to myself ‘Man, I wish I were an ant! Then I could
crawl right out of this place and start my life all over!’ Well, I
couldn't pull that one off, so I decided to make a homemade comic book
about it. It got around and I had a little audience with my cellmates.
Really built up my confidence about drawing. That's when I realized that
one day I could be a comic book artist. I sent out my first submission
from the county jail. I hope one day my story can be an inspiration to
anybody out there who has a dream. You can do it if you want it bad
enough. I was determined to do something positive with my life after
that.”
It is a well-documented fact that young Black males make up a ridiculous percentage of the people incarcerated in the United States. But even here, under the unyielding thumb of systemic racism, we see creativity, talent, and a desire to contribute something positive. Ant has also got to be one of the few superhero comics that features an Black woman as lead character. It was really difficult to find, in my own collection, Black female creators (though I did find a few), so it's great to at least see a lead character representing that important demographic.
Okay, enough for today. The posts over the next little while might be a bit longer than usual, but that's because this is a long-overdue, or perhaps a long-running, conversation. And I think it's important for us, as comics fans, to consider where our hobby and our passion fits into this important moment of social change in the world.
More to follow.
Further Reading and Related Links
If you need to get up to speed on what's going on in the U.S. right now, here's a CBC article. I know it might be Canadian bias, but I always feel like the CBC does a good job reporting on stuff like this.
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