The theme this week (as hosted by Worducopia) is world literature, and my pick is South African cartoonist Jonathan Zapiro, one of the most controversial artists to come out of the post-apartheid era. Here’s his bio from his website. He has gained notoriety over the past few years for his cartoons condemning African National Congress president Jacob Zuma, as I’ve posted about here. Zuma, elected to the ANC in 2007, has been charged with corruption and fraud and was even tried for rape (though he was eventually found not guilty), and has made many controversial remarks on a variety of subjects. Zuma has filed defamation lawsuits against Zapiro and a number of other media outlets in South Africa, yet Zapiro continues to go after him. If Zuma is elected South Africa’s president this week (which he is favored to do), it remains to be seen how much of a free hand he would give the media in terms of criticism and satire.
CORA Week 3: international
4About the Author
Founder of the Glyph Awards, honoring the best in black comics; occasional comics creator; former comics retailer; short story writer; voracious reader; classic film geek; dabbler in music and acting.
Wow. Controversial is right! I liked that he said he couldn’t imagine being a cartoonist so he went into architecture, but then he couldn’t imagine being an architect.
Hi Rich,
Thanks for another informative and enjoyable read. My knowledge about comics and cartoons is pretty limited so I was quite pleased with myself for knowing who Spielgman is. lol
Will be linking your post next week in my Little Lov’n Monday feature.
Hi Rich,
Your post is linked here, Little Lov’n Monday. Hope it brings you traffic and new regular readers.
Thanks for sharing this, Rich. I remember reading one of your previous posts about Zapiro and I’m amazed by how he continues to press on in such a contentious environment. (That cartoon comparing his nomination speech to Obama’s is hilarious.)