Comic Essay
I chose to illustrate a comic on a prominent illustrator, Emory Douglas and his involvement with The Black Panther Party. I was inspired by the brief part of Lecture 4 — Cultural Appropriation - Activism and Resistance Art — where we talked about Emory Douglas and Black Panther Party. I found his work inspiring as I do not know of many influential black artists that have made a substantial difference in society through their art, this is mainly due to the lack of education that is given in the Canadian education system. Something I wished I could have added in this comic is commentary on the demographic of young black people who do not know the history of their own people, and either have to find the information themselves or stay ignorant to their ancestors' own past. This is something I struggle with myself, there is just so much history about my people that I do not know, and trying to learn it all is overwhelming. I meant the bartender to be a representation of me and all the other black people who have this experience, of being so assimilated to western culture and not fully educated on our culture, that it is almost embarrassing when talking to other black people who have had a different upbringing and more cultural knowledge.
The most important thing there is to remember is that it is because of artists like Emory Douglas and other revolutionary artists and activists that we do not have to know what it is like to struggle, be oppressed or discriminated against to the same degree as they were in the past. It is because of activist artists like Emory Douglas that allow us to live in ignorant bliss, because they helped shape the world that let us live without fully knowing what it is like to feel segregation and oppression like they did and not have to fight for basic human rights.
Filspapier, the narrator, is meant to represent the stereotypical black activist, using the loud and proud, young black activist trope and spinning it to remind people that without those willing to be loud and in your face, some may not hear. There needs to be a mix of both, peace markers and loud activists who will not stop yelling until things are changed. In this case, Filspapier is just a child but he is aware of his oppression and his tactics of being loud and proud work for him at the moment. I tried not to use any other black stereotypes, not anything that did not have a meaning or move the story forward. Ultimately, I think it is easy for me to do this because I am of the same race as these characters and understand what is and is not appropriate to use.
I wanted to make my comic into a film noir style, as Filspapier is from a dystopian future that has gone backwards in time to an oppressive political climate. I toggled between clean linework and sketchy textures, because I think both fit the character and context. Overall I wanted the comic to take inspiration from Emory Douglas’ work itself, with block print, black bold lines and minimal pops of colour.
Works Cited
- B. Panthers, “Black Panther’s Ten-Point Program,” Oct. 15, 1966. https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/workers/black-panthers/1966/10/15.htm
- “Emory Douglas | MoMA,” The Museum of Modern Art. https://www.moma.org/artists/70943
- “Emory Douglas - Illustration History.” https://www.illustrationhistory.org/artists/emory-douglas
- C. G, “The Revolutionary Artwork of the Black Panther Party’s Emory Douglas,” United States Hypocrisy, Mar. 27, 2020. https://ushypocrisy.com/2020/03/27/the-revolutionary-artwork-of-the-black-panther-partys-emory-douglas/
A. McKinley and G. Russonello, “Fifty Years Later, Black Panthers’ Art Still Resonates,” The New York Times, Oct. 15, 2016. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/16/arts/fifty-years-later-black-panthers-art-still-resonates.html