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More wordless panels for you, plus a shout to MTV Exit for sticking a link to our Borderland Comics site on their Facebook page. Also, be sure to check out daily developments on my upcoming Knight Journalism Fellowship via the Knight Project tab above. Plus you can now access individual comics via a handy drop-down menu by hovering over the said tabs – checkout the US Foreign Policy one to see what I’m talking about. Eagle-eyed Archcomix visitors will notice the new newsletter field on the left – add your email address and stay abreast of all future Archcomix rumblings. Big thanks to the tireless work of Stanford CS Senior Alex Easton for his help in making the said changes.
New here? Go to the start of the wordless comic above here. You can order a copy of my latest comic on human trafficking here – now at 18% of our total goal, so dig deep in those pockets and help us raise awareness of the plight of human trafficking victims. Thanks to those who already have.
As the Borderland comics kickstarter fund (see right) chugs along, we’re getting contacted by NGOs around the world who want to share and coordinate efforts to combat human trafficking. One of these was Oasis Global, who are behind the Stop the Traffik campaign. Click here to watch their intro video and learn how human trafficking might even affect how your favourite chocolate bar was made – apparently almost half the world’s chocolate is grown in Cote D’Ivoire. In the words of Steve Chalke, Stop the Traffik’s Founder and UN Special Advisor for Community Action against Human Trafficking:
“When Cadbury’s and Hershey and Mars and Lindt and Nestle and all of the others produce chocolate that is traffic-free, you can be sure that they will be the first to put a little mark on those bars telling us that. If a chocolate bar doesn’t say it’s traffic-free, it’s just not – it’s as simple as that”
In other news, the sketchbook studies on my Flickr page continue, this time with a Hardhats focus as I gear up for some enormous crowd scenes in Part 2 of my upcoming graphic novel, Hardhats. More on the Hardhats page here.
Today’s stories: a new page to the site to chronicle my upcoming Knight Journalism Fellowship at Stanford, featuring a CGI Polish history trailer and a plan to resurrect editorial cartoons for the 21st century. As I get back into drawing after a mini hiatus spent focused on stopmotion, I’ve cracked the spine on a new sketchbook and will be posting the results (however hit or miss) to my flickr account. If you’re on flickr, then add me as a contact. If you’re not, and can’t bring yourself to click that link, then scrolling down the right hand sidebar is enough to give you a thumbnailed idea of what my scrawls look like. To watch the fruit of my claymation labours, then check out my youtube channel.
New here? Go to the start of the wordless comic above here. You can order a copy of my latest comic on human trafficking here – now at 14% of our total goal, so dig deep in those pockets and help us raise awareness of the plight of human trafficking victims. Thanks to those who already have.
Opening page of Pika-Don by the Stanford Graphic Novel Project
Friday marked the 65th anniversary of the US atomic bombing of Hiroshima, and the first time that a US representative has attended any of the memorial services held in Japan. US Ambassador John Roos was at the service in Hiroshima to observe the moment of silence at 8:15am – the time that “Little Boy“, the most inappropriately named piece of ordinance ever, detonated some 300m above ground level, instantly incinerating an estimated 70,000 people. Click here to read an extract from Pika-Don (“flash-boom”, from the Japanese term for the atomic bombs), created by the Stanford Graphic Novel Project based on double atomic bomb survivor Tsutomu Yamaguchi‘s ordeal and experience the horror of being at ground zero (within 3km) for both blasts. Today at 11:02am will mark the anniversary of the Nagasaki bombing, which was actually 3 times more powerful (20 kilotons) than the Hiroshima blast. Be sure to check out this excellent digital resource from the Nagasaki Archive: a patch for Google earth that lets you explore the shell of the city in the the atomic aftermath.
In more surreal news, ex-Fugee Wyclef Jean is running for Haitian President. Seriously. Despite alleged mismanagement of his charity, his support for the US-backed coup of 2005 that ousted then-President Jean-Betrand Aristride, or – the fact that being a successful pop star does not qualify you to run a country, despite what it may do for your record sales. One-time…
Last but not least, the SOAW (School of the Americas Watch) delegation to Colombia is continuing their protest around US military installations (see video below) in the run up to the Aug 17 Constitutional Court decision that will determine the legal basis of the US military presence in the country and its use of Colombian bases. All the more dramatic, given Saturday’s inauguration of new Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who is decidedly more pro-Chavez than outgoing President Alvaro Uribe. Then again, U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield’s comments to local radio station La FM demonstrate the US’s attitude towards the Constitutional Court’s ruling. When asked if a negative decision from the Constitutional Court could affect bilateral relations, Brownfield said, “in absolute terms, I think not.”
New here? Go to the start of the comic here. You can order a copy of my latest comic on human trafficking here. Scroll down for an update on what’s new in the Archcomix universe below the fold. Today’s stories: a belated commemoration of the Hiroshima atomic bomb drop, 65 years ago on Friday, Wyclef Jean runs for Haitian President, and direct action against US military bases in Colombia.
New here? Go to the start of the comic here. You can order a copy of my latest comic on human trafficking here. Scroll down for an update on what’s new in the Archcomix universe below the fold.
New here? Go to the start of the comic here. You can order a copy of my latest comic on human trafficking here. Scroll down for an update on what’s new in the Archcomix universe below the fold.
Taken from protest on July 29, photo courtesy of http://nomilitaresencostarica.blogspot.com/
Last month saw the Costa Rican government agree (by 31 to 8 votes) to grant a US military fleet unprecedented access to its waters until the end of the year. Up to 7000 Navy personnel and 20 helicopters thus have the right to “to carry out activities they consider necessary for the fulfillment of their mission, which includes wearing their uniforms while exercising official functions”. This is all against the war on drugs, you understand. Nothing whatsoever to do with the ongoing turmoil in Honduras following ex-President Zelaya’s ousting (for more info, go here) or the larger-scale roll-out of US military presence across Central and South America. Columbia, anyone? Not to mention a recent change of management in the Costa Rican Port Authority:
“The lack of a debate in Congress makes one suspect that they will be operating militarily and not necessarily confined to the drug trafficking operations. Is it a coincidence that ships arrive as a new port management is being put into practice, eliminating the authority of the state agency JAPDEVA (Port Management Board of the Atlantic Coast Development) and its group of unionized dock workers…and preventing any possibility of strikes, work stoppages and incidents in Limón, such as those in Panama? ”
Francisco Cordero-Gené, former head advisor to the Costa Rican legislative assembly during the past two administrations
More on the background to Costa Rica’s uneasy US alliance courtesy of Joe Shanksy at Upsidedownworld. If you’re dubious of the US’s motives in the area and want to take action, then sign the petition here – the chance to do your part (albeit tiny and in e-form) is only a click away.
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My collaboration with Fulbright Fellow Olga Trusova on a comic about human trafficking is now officially out in the open and on the crowdfunding site Kickstarter. Check out our pitch here and help get our comic printed and distributed to raise awareness of this important issue – we’re currently just under a tenth of our goal with 55 days to go. Olga was recently interviewed by the Human Trafficking Project on the background and scope of the project – read all about it here.
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Last but not least, be the first to hear Judge Walker’s decision on the Prop 8 trial tomorrow by clicking here. See below for a comic I originally did in the buildup to the original Prop 8 vote in league with legendary local activists the Raging Grannies. Check out their website here.
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If you’re looking for more information on my latest human trafficking comic, Borderland, then go here. Most importantly, please pre-order our comic through Kickstarter so we can meet our fundraising goal and get it printed and distributed here in the US to raise awareness about human trafficking. A big thank you if you’ve already pledged. Us independent creators would not exist without your support.
If you want to see the latest installment of stop motion genius from some more of the 8th graders I’ve been teaching, then go here for “Mr Toast”.
My human trafficking comics journalism project is now live on Kickstarter. For more info and to see our video pitch, visit the link or check out the new “Trafficking” page I’ve added to Archcomix.com. Most importantly, please pre-order our comic through Kickstarter so we can meet our fundraising goal and get it printed and distributed here in the US to raise awareness about human trafficking.
