Posted on Apr 10, 2023
Why a portrait artist from Ireland started making comics about U.S. police brutality
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https://www.npr.org/2023/04/10/ [login to see] /cartoon-illustrations-police-brutality-pan-cooke
After Minneapolis police killed George Floyd in the summer of 2020, the entire United States watched as protests against police brutality rocked cities from coast to coast. And while the U.S. was grappling with questions of race and justice, the rest of the world looked on, too.
That included the Irish illustrator Pan Cooke. As a white man who lived thousands away from the ongoing protests, the racial reckoning gave him the chance to educate himself about why police brutality had been dominating headlines.
"It was a topic that I was very ignorant to and wanted to learn more about it," Cooke said.
While researching cases of police violence, he came across the story of Eric Garner, a Black man who was killed by Staten Island police in 2014. Learning about what happened to Garner, Cooke began to create and share cartoons illustrating Garner's story, as well as other cases connected to police brutality and racism, on his Instagram page.
After Minneapolis police killed George Floyd in the summer of 2020, the entire United States watched as protests against police brutality rocked cities from coast to coast. And while the U.S. was grappling with questions of race and justice, the rest of the world looked on, too.
That included the Irish illustrator Pan Cooke. As a white man who lived thousands away from the ongoing protests, the racial reckoning gave him the chance to educate himself about why police brutality had been dominating headlines.
"It was a topic that I was very ignorant to and wanted to learn more about it," Cooke said.
While researching cases of police violence, he came across the story of Eric Garner, a Black man who was killed by Staten Island police in 2014. Learning about what happened to Garner, Cooke began to create and share cartoons illustrating Garner's story, as well as other cases connected to police brutality and racism, on his Instagram page.
Why a portrait artist from Ireland started making comics about U.S. police brutality
Posted from npr.org
Comics
Cartoons
Police
Law Enforcement
Violence
Posted 1 y ago
Responses: 2
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."I'm just using art to tell a story that's already available, just in a different way," he said.
The art is something he hopes to continue doing in the future, as he's balancing drawing comics and writing a memoir called Puzzled, which details his experiences growing up with obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety.
Cooke says he hopes his work will continue to bring attention to police violence.
"I just want to be a stepping stone towards people doing positive action," he said."
..."I'm just using art to tell a story that's already available, just in a different way," he said.
The art is something he hopes to continue doing in the future, as he's balancing drawing comics and writing a memoir called Puzzled, which details his experiences growing up with obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety.
Cooke says he hopes his work will continue to bring attention to police violence.
"I just want to be a stepping stone towards people doing positive action," he said."
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel good day Brother William, always informational and of the most interesting. Thanks for sharing, have a blessed day!
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