More on why McCain sucks

Feministing details "McCain's Long and Ugly Record on Choice".

Egg Rescue Squad: Defending the Rights of Microscopic Americans Everywhere!

Inspired by a proposed law in Colorado giving Constitutional rights to human eggs.

Toon: Badly Needed Jamming Devices

Badly Needed Jamming Devices

Cell phone silencers are just the beginning... let's make jammers for harassers, Hummers and warmongers, too!

Toon: Your Yucky Body: Why You Need a Mommy Job!

Your Yucky Body: Why You Need a Mommy Job!

Get thee to a plastic surgeon, you tragic post-pregnancy ladies, you!

And yes, I know, I know--I need to be posting here more often. I promise to catch up all the archives. I draw 1-3 cartoons every week, but what with the wedding and a recent trip to Mexico, turning them into the newspaper is all I've been managing.

Your Yucky Body: Disgusting Diet Trends

Your Yucky Body: Disgusting Diet Trends
Originally uploaded by M1khaela.

Partly inspired by the disgusting facts about the weirdly popular diet drug Alli, but partly by a personal experience. A few years ago I had a horrible case of pneumonia that left me bed-ridden and barely able to breathe for three miserable weeks. When I returned to the world of the living, sickly and weak, I got all these compliments for losing weight (“you look so HEALTHY!” "what diet are you on?") when I had never been MORE unhealthy in my life. Skinny does NOT equal healthy.

Pix from Planned Parenthood "Let's Talk About Sex" Book Event

Planned Parenthood "Let's Talk About Sex" Book Event: Jessica Valenti and Mikhaela Reid
Originally uploaded by M1khaela.

The signing at Think Coffee with Feministing's Jessica Valenti (Full Frontal Feminism) and Amber Madison (Hooking Up) was fantastic. There were plenty of seats but it was standing room only, and the hysterical laughter I got in response to my slideshow made me feel like a stand-up comedian on a good night.

Poor Amber's bus broke down on her way to the signing, but we held off the crowd with an extended Q&A until a very long cab ride from Connecticut finally got her to the signing.

Note: I apologize for blurring out the close-up photos of naked women's crotches that we did the reading in front of--I like to consider this blog safe for school and work, or I'd have left them! I am such a censor, it's embarassing.

NYC June 22: Let's Talk About Sex! Planned Parenthood book event w/ Mikhaela Reid, Jessica Valenti and Amber Madison!

Let's Talk About Sex! (If You're Into that Sort of Thing)

• Location: Think Coffee, 248 Mercer Street New York, NY (212) 228-6226
• Date: 6/22/2007 from 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
• Hosted By: Planned Parenthood, choicevoice@ppnyc.org
• RSVP by: June 21, 2007 at 2:00 pm

A bold and brazen discussion with three writers who know their stuff:

Jessica Valenti, 28, is the founder and Executive Editor of Feministing.com and the author of Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman’s Guide to Why Feminism Matters.

Amber Madison, 23, is currently touring colleges throughout the country giving sex talks, and has made a number of television and radio appearances in support of her book, Hooking Up: A Girls All-out Guide to Sex and Sexuality, most recently on NBC's Today Show. www.ambermadisononline.com

Mikhaela Reid, 27, recently published her first book, Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela, available June 4th, 2007. She graduated from Harvard University in 2003, where she studied social anthropology and photography and drew weekly political cartoons for the Harvard Crimson. www.mikhaela.net

Join us for a conversation about what's good, what's bad, and what's just plain weird about being young and sexual in today's America.

Note: I'll be doing a mini cartoon slideshow for this one, focused on the cartoons I've done about sexuality and reproductive rights.

East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention, Pt. 3: "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery"

Cheryl Lynn Eaton (Digital Femme, The Ormes Society) and L.A. Banks (Vampire Huntress)

Moderator Stephanie Brandford and Cheryl Lynn Eaton; Rashida Lewis "Sand Storm") talks about the cover of her book

In February of this year, comics writer Cheryl Lynn Eaton founded The Ormes Society to celebrate and promote the work of black women comics creators and professionals and to reach out to black women comics readers. The Society is named for pioneer Zelda "Jackie" Ormes, currently considered to be the first syndicated African-American woman cartoonist. The Society started with about 13 members but is now 20 strong and growing. As Cheryl Lynn explained in her blog:

Black women are out there creating, but unlike our peers, we have the tendency to create in a vacuum... . How can I have the nerve to be irritated by how sites devoted to black creators are dominated by men and books with superhero themes (and on occasion, "hot" black model threads) if I never add my own contributions? How can I be irked by the fact that none of the members of the sites devoted to women in comics commented on the dearth of brown-skinned girls as characters in the MINX line if I never registered on those boards to make a post about that topic in the first place?

The Ormes Society would be a bit of a stepping stone or gateway. It'd be a place where black female comic creators and fans could (1) find each other (2) share our creations (3) talk about topics that are important to us and (4) gain the courage needed to bring those thoughts and creations to the larger comic reading/creating audience. It would also be a place for editors, fans and fellow creators to find us and share their thoughts about our work and about topics that pertain to black women in comics (both in the pages and behind the scenes).

The above photos are from a May 19 panel at the East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention in Philly, "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery." The discussion was steered by the fantastic Stephanie Brandford, who also moderates the Dwayne McDuffie VHive comics forum under the name mutate20. (Also note Stephanie's awesome "Invisible Universe" T-shirt). The below are some key quotes from my hand-scribbled notes on the panel:

1. So what's the problem?

Stephanie Brandford began the panel by showing a 8-minute series of video clips she had compiled of depictions of black women characters in speculative fiction movies, including Storm (X-Men), Gail (Sin City), Joy (Children of Men), Niobe (Matrix movies), Akasha (Queen of the Damned) and various others. Most of the characters were in minor or supporting roles, with a few exceptions.

Brandford then prefaced her first question by explaining that as someone with an engineering background, she would take a problem-solving approach in her role as moderator. She then asked the panelists to describe what they saw as the problem (with both the relative lack of substantial roles given to black women in both film and comics.):

• Rashida Lewis said that black women characters were "too few, and too one-dimensional", adding "We can always use a few more sisters holding things down in comic books.
• L.A. Banks referred to the film clips, saying that for the most part "either we died in the first 30 seconds of the flick, or we were in roles that were powerless." Said Banks: "I wanted to have some young heroes that look like my daughter."
• Cheryl Lynn Eaton agreed: "It's black women as perpetual sidekick. We need to hear from more women's voices. And it would be nice to see some books geared toward us."

2. Solutions?

• RL: "Write to the publishers!"
• LAB: Banks strongly agreed. "One letter is considered to be like 100 responses." She emphasized that the bottoms line for publishers and the film industry is money. "You need to understand how this works economically... . The late great Octavia Butler never made the New York Times bestseller list. Vote at the box office!"
• CLE: "Speak up with your pen, with your wallet. Write to the messageboards."

3. Root Cause?

• SB: "How can creator be encouraged to improve the portrayals of black women?"
• RL: "I think I see a movement, our own little Renaissance." She added that "There should be good characters on both ends of the spectrum" (Note: I believe she meant the spectrum of mainstream to independent comics publishing).
• LAB: Banks emphasized economics again. She said racism was obviously a huge problem in the industry, but "the economics moves a lot of that stuff out of the way." She also encouraged readers who wanted to support black women creators and characters to buy across genres, from horror and science fiction to comics and mainstream literature, and not just to stick with their favorite genres. "If you don't buy across the board, you won't have [black] mysteries, [black] science fiction. Just urban lit and 'women's fiction.'"
• CLE: Eaton addressed creators of all backgrounds with her answer. "When you create, think that no child want to pick up a book and feel that they are less than any other group, no child wants to feel left out." She also commented on the small but significant attempts at diversity being made by mainstream comics publishers. "The comics companies are scared so you see them making little tentative changes... They don't put the effort into them."

  She added that when a small attempt at adding characters of color failed to have huge success, publishers often used that as an excuse not to try again. ("Oh, we already tried that.") What was really needed was "characters of all races, all backgrounds. They really have to make the effort and the commitment."

• LAB: Banks changed the topic slightly and talked about some of the tactics she has used to make her series of Vampire Huntress novels so successful. She mentioned that while she puts out a new book every six months, she also posts 10-20 page unique "in-between" stories for free on her website and MySpace to keep readers coming back. Her readers send the stories around and tell all their friends, which builds sales for the books when they eventually come out.

4. What would an ideal state look like?

• RL: "There should be a gazillion small companies putting out what needs to be said, however they need to get the truth out. When you tell your own truth, people follow."
• LAB: In an ideal world "every major publishing house would be giving Anne Rice dollars to people writing speculative fiction." She said that 60% of all paperback sales are romance novels, and that publishers tend to put all the money and promotions and good distribution deals into a few big authors. "They're all putting Danielle Steele in her Rolls Royce. There's a huge pay disparity."
• CLE: "Utopia? I'm so used to just fighting for the most minute recognition. Just to walk into a comic book store and see a diverse range."
• RL: Talked about how there is often a defensive backlash against comic book creators of color: "When you do start bringing things to the light, people get upset." She said she had gotten a lot of negative reactions to making the main characters in her Sand Storm comic books, which are set in ancient Egypt, black instead of fititng into the "Elizabeth Taylor" white Cleopatra that so many people are comfortable with.

5. Question from the audience: "What can you do as an artist to reverse stereotypes of black women as either video hos or asexual "mama" or "mammy" caricatures?"

• RL and LAB both talked about how they had dealt with the sexuality of their characters, trying to avoid stereotypes and create a balance between their characters beauty, intelligence and sexuality--powerful women with moral codes who nonetheless owned their own sexuality.
• CLE felt that black women aren't necessarily seen as very sexual in mainstream comics, and that they were often background characters while all kinds of male superheroes fought over white women characters. "You have to fight and say black women ARE desirable, black women are beautiful. [In the mainstream comics] We're like handmaidens to Kitty Pryde and Jean Grey, backdrops to Wonder Woman."

5. Question from the audience: "Who is your favorite character and why?"

• RL "White Tiger." [Note: a Latina character in Marvel comics] She also mentioned how much she loved Sigourney Weaver in Aliens.
• LAB Sin City's Gail, played by Rosario Dawson.
• CLE "Misty Knight." [Note: Knight was one of the first substantial black women characters in mainstream comics. A few days after the panel, Eaton writes in her blog that she was horrified to see the latest cover of the comics series starring Misty Knight, which shows Knight and her friends drawn in a ridiculous porn style and being molested by tentacles. See PW Beat for more.]

6. Question from the audience from a white man who wanted to know if there were any special rules or guidelines for a white person depicting characters of color.

• The panelists basically agreed that everyone in comics should be encouraged to create smart, sensitive and substantial characters of color, and that while there were no special rules or guidelines it was important to approach such characters respectfully and try to do proper research.
• CLE Eaton added: "Fans are going to complain regardless. As long as you've done your research, don't worry about what they say."

7. Question from the audience from a librarian who works with a lot of young black women in the Bronx and wanted to know if there were any particular books she should try to acquire for her library.

• The panelists had trouble coming up with books with black women characters appropriate for young girls, basically lamenting the serious lack of such books in comics. CLE suggested that one good choice might be Aya by Marguerite Abouet and Clément Oubrerie, a graphic novel based on Abouet's experience as a teenage girl growing up in the Ivory Coast in the 1970s.

That's all, folks. Don't forget to visit The Ormes Society and Digital Femme for more on this topic.

See "East Coast Black Age of Comics, Part 1: The Glyph Awards" and "ECBACC Photo Outtake" and Part 2: The Conventionfor more extensive commentary, photos and notes on ECBACC.

P.S. You know you want to buy Masheka's book. And mine. And see us on tour! Right? Thought so.

164 pages of scientific proof that abstinence-only education doesn't work

If we had a reality-based government or media, this federal report would be a big story, especially since so many millions are spent per year promotiong and/or mandating abstinence-only education and silencing methods of STD and pregnancy prevention that actually work. But it doesn't fit in with the agenda of the Christian Right, and so it gets buried. From the AP:

WASHINGTON --Students who took part in sexual abstinence programs were just as likely to have sex as those who did not, according to a study ordered by Congress. Also, those who attended one of the four abstinence classes that were reviewed reported having similar numbers of sexual partners as those who did not attend the classes. And they first had sex at about the same age as other students -- 14.9 years, according to Mathematica Policy Research Inc. The federal government now spends about $176 million annually on abstinence-until-marriage education. Critics have repeatedly said they don't believe the programs are working, and the study will give them reinforcement...

Updated: Mikhaela, Jen, Stephanie and Feministing's Jessica Valenti at WAM 2007!

WOMEN, ACTION & THE MEDIA 2007
March 30 - April 1, 2007
Stata Center, MIT, Cambridge

Keynote Talks by Ellen GOODMAN & Thenmozhi SOUNDARARAJAN

Over 60 featured SPEAKERS & PANELISTS, including: Cynthia ENLOE, Loretta ROSSm E.J. GRAFF, Sonali KOLHATKAR, Lyn Mikel BROWN, Caryl RIVERS, Jessica VALENTI, Liza FEATHERSTONE, Gloria FELDT, Rita HENLEY JENSEN, Rebecca TRAISTER and more.

Over 30 PROGRAM SESSIONS, including: Making the Most of Digital Media, Why Journalism's Ethos Distorts News, Packaging & Selling Out Girls, Feminist Action for Media Accountability & Justice, The Freelance-Editor Relationship, Becoming a Citizen Journalist, The Web as a Site for Black Girls' Resistance, Making Documentaries for Social Change, Big Coverage, Big Cash, Women Using International Media, Sell a Book Proposal Without Selling Out, Promoting Justice Through Hip-Hop, and of course...

• Resistance Through Ridicule: Cartoons & Humor in Activism.
  Sunday, April 1 @ 10 a.m., featuring Mikhaela Reid, Stephanie McMillan ("Minimum Security"), Jen Sorensen ("Slowpoke") and moderator Jessica Valenti (of Feministing fame).

  Humor can be serious stuff. Last year cartoonist Stephanie McMillan turned anti-choice politician Bill Napoli's support for a near-total abortion ban against him by encouraging women to call him for help with the most minor of decisions; her "Call Bill" cartoon became so popular she auctioned it off to raise money for a reproductive health clinic. Subversive women cartoonists are claiming space in male-dominated alternative and daily newspapers, and using their cartoons to help make change. The popular blog Feministing mixes anger with irreverence, turns a familiar symbol inside out with its logo of a busty mud-flap girl making a rude gesture, and got props from a mainstream magazine for making feminism "fun again."

  Can humor and cartoons make activism accessible and reach audiences that might otherwise might be apathetic? How can writers, bloggers, activists and editors use humor and art as political tools? Are art and humor a form of activism? Cartoon-filled slideshow and discussion, anger & laughter guaranteed.

New Toon: Sgt. Dobson's Boot Camp with Rudy and Mitt!

Otherwise known as "Formerly 'Moderate' Republicans Try to Court the Religious Right" James Dobson terrifies me. So far I believe Romney is the only candidate to have actually met with the Focus on the Family mastermind, but it remains to be seen whether Dobson will endorse him, as his Mormonism and former moderate views don't sit well with many right-wing evangelical family values types.

Giuliani is currently polling way ahead of Romney and McCain. But word is that he doesn't stand a chance with religious right voters due to his adultery, serial marriages/divorces and pro-choice/pro-gay views and history. Romney even claims Rudy is pro marriage equality, but there's no evidence for that. And Rudy's recently been emphasizing that he only believes in marriage between "a man and a woman".

I have a long history of both despising Mitt Romney and drawing cartoons about him--I started out as a cartoonist for the Boston Phoenix when Mitt was just a slimy gubernatorial candidate. I watched him get progressively more anti-gay and anti-choice and it saddens me to think he has even a chance at the White House. I think he's polling third, but he's now the most anti-choice, anti-gay candidate running.

As for Giuliani, I'm no fan.

P.S.Welcome to readers from Cagle.com!

P.P.S.I'm still going to do a cartoon about anti-transgender workplace discrimination, but it'll be for next week, folks.

P.P.P.S. I wish I had the time this week to do something extra about the Walter Reed hospital mess and problems in the VA system. My grandmother Melba was a disabled Korean war veteran, and it was something she was deeply passionate about. I did this 2003 cartoon back when she received a letter from the VA asking to give back part of her meager benefits check.

New Toons: Rats Gone Wild, HPV, Hate Report

This is a somewhat random assortment--the Rats Gone Wild and NYC Condoms cartoons were drawn for Chelsea Now, of course, and the other two are my usual weekly strip. The HPV/cervical cancer vaccine issue is complicated, and I'm not necessarily endorsing a mandatory vaccine, just registering my total disagreement with the whole "my precious little daughter won't EVER have sex so she doesn't need a vaccine" crowd.

And the brutal hate crime murder of 72-year out gay man Andrew Anthos is just incredibly depressing, which accounts for the total lack of sarcasm or humor or my usual artfulness in that cartoon.

P.S. Regarding NY Comic Con: suffice it to say I got to hang with Keith Knight, Alison Bechdel, David Rees, R. Stevens, Ted Rall and others, which made the whole business worthwhile.