Je Suis Charlie

   

Papa est parti pas Wolinski

 Terrorism can happen so far away and yet hit so close to home. I was shocked when I learned of the slaughter of twelve innocent journalists on the staff of the French political satire cartoon magazine called “Charlie Hebso”. 

     A band of militant extremists assassinated twelve people on the magazine’s staff because their religious beliefs differed with a cartoon the periodical ran on it’s cover. The terrorists exposed their true colors by striking at personal freedom, thus showing the rest of the world what will happen to freedom everywhere if these savages are allowed to come into power. In targeting a small band of cartoonists, these terrorists have managed to spotlight the horror and intolerance behind their agenda.

Watching the news, I was outraged along with the rest of the world. As a cartoonist, I was saddened on a deeper level. A close bond exists between the brotherhood and sisterhood of cartoonists in the world. Only a small number of us are chosen by this unique vocation, so the loss seems even more compelling. 

     Cartooning is a strange and lonely profession. It is done solitarily, by one person with one pencil and one sheet of paper, but its simplicity brings joy to many. Cartoons are an ephemeral art form with a short life span. They are meant to be looked at, read and absorbed in an instant, offering a brief chuckle or a perplexed smirk, depending on their content (and depending on the reader's state of mind at the time). Then the page is turned and they evaporate into the ether. A good cartoon strikes a familiar nerve with the reader and finds a home on a cubicle wall or a refrigerator door, where its shelf life lingers a little longer. Most cartoons are disposable, making a quick point and moving on its way with the rest of the day’s information, usually never to be heard from again. And certainly not cause for a reaction extreme enough to warrant the murder of the artist who creates it. Although cartoonists work alone, we share a common bond that can’t be defined, and can’t be broken.

     The terror attack in Paris only makes the need for free speech stronger. As an artist, I never underestimate the power a cartoon can have. Cartoons may look like a few quick strokes of ink on paper, but the simple combination of words and pictures can cut deep into the reader’s soul, eliciting a response from the inside out, as the warmth of humor or the cutting edge of satire spread from the brain to the heart, causing an instant flood of  endorphins to wash over a person’s psyche. Good cartoons are powerful things. Just for an instant, they make the reader feel something. Humor. Laughter. Enlightenment. Not only do cartoons make us feel, they make us think. They make us reflect on the human condition and make us realize we are not alone on our journey through life.

     Attacks on freedom of speech will never be tolerated by the masses. Cartoons, like freedom, can’t be contained. At least not while people can still think for themselves. Hopefully the majority of people will feel that way for a long, long time. This tragedy brings new meaning to the old saying “the pen is mightier than the sword”. 

     I will continue to fight for personal freedom as long as I can scribble words and pictures on paper that make people smile, and once in awhile, make people stop and think. Je Suis Charlie.