TÜRKIYE – ZEHRA ÖMEROĞLU
Once again, our headliner is Zehra Ömeroğlu. We are appalled by a recent report from Türkiye's Board for the Protection of Minors from Obscene Publications that in essence characterises a 2020 LeMan magazine cartoon of Zehra's as pornographic. We utterly reject the findings of the board's report, which amount to a condemnation of her guilt ahead of a court appearance in April. (Details..>)
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EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (DROI)
Last month, we attended the meeting of the Human Rights Subcommittee of MEPs along with colleagues from Cartooning for Peace and presented findings from our report Cartoonists on the Line. Zehra Ömeroğlu's case was among those covered in the report, which also highlighted the specific harassment of women cartoonists. Video from the session is available on the subcommittee's website. (Details..>)
HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
Also in February a booklet was launched at the HRC, a joint effort of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Cartoon Movement, and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The various articles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are each illustrated with cartoons crafted by artists from around the globe; we congratulate our friends at Cartoon Movement on this initiative. (Details..>)
FRANCE – COCO
We note with concern reported threats toward cartoonist Corinne Rey (Coco) following the publication of a cartoon in Libération newspaper that was received as mockery of the victims of starvation in Gaza, and her editors' spirited refutation of that claim. As ever our position is clear; no cartoon, regardless of its content, can justify threats to the personal safety of others, least of all directed at a survivor of terrorist violence. An unpopular cartoon cannot be mistaken for a death warrant. (Details..>)
FRANCE / GERMANY – DRAW FOR CHANGE! ON ARTE TV
We highly recommend the superb documentary series Draw For Change! now showing on television run on ARTE in Europe, also available online until June. These powerful and timely films profile six courageous cartoonists – Amany Al-Ali, Doaa el-Adl, Victoria Lomasko, Mar Maremoto, Rachita Taneja, and Ann Telnaes – challenging authoritarianism, censorship, misogyny, and patriarchy in their respective countries. (Details..>)
SUDAN – KHARTOON MAG
We congratulate Khalid Albaih on the launch of a new platform showcasing the work of political cartoonists and comic artists displaced by the ongoing conflict in Sudan. In January's newsletter we linked to an inteview with Osman Obaid, who is one of the cartoonists featured along with Youssef Al-Amin, Ahmed Fouad, Tayeb Hajo, Shiroug Idris, and Nader Jani. Every week Khartoon Mag offers contemporary political perspectives on Sudan. (Details..>)
USA – JEN SORENSEN
Congratulations also to former AAEC president and contributor to Daily Kos, Politico, and multiple alt news weeklies, Jen Sorensen on her recent Berryman Award for Editorial Cartoons, presented by the National Press Foundation. Speaking of the prevailing hard times for the profession, she said: "Strangely, it seems being an editorial cartoonist is now a far riskier career choice than being an insurrectionist politician." (Details..>)
USA – GANNETT CUT CARTOON STRIPS
The Gannett group have lately dispensed with a significant number of the cartoon strips carried in their newspapers. Doonesbury is perhaps the most well-known casualty but, as The Daily Cartoonist blog explains, the truly alarming outcome is the numbers of women now excluded across all major American papers. (Details..>)
BELGIUM – CÉCILE BERTRAND
Colleagues in Europe are mourning the loss of Cécile Bertrand, a winner twice over of the Grand Prix du Press Cartoon Belgium and familiar to readers of La Libre Belgique among other titles. Throughout her career she demonstrated a commitment to human rights and equality. Bertrand was also an accomplished sculptor and illustrator of books for children.
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