This is my cartoon of the day, although it's actually a few days old --- by Canadian political cartoonist Michael de Adder. Some have noted, with justification, that the size of the iceberg called racism is much larger than depicted here, but only so much will fit into the space allocated to a drawing of this sort.
It highlights the scale of racism --- and the role the ubiquitous cell phone has played in dramatic events of the past weeks. Had not bystanders filmed the cold-blooded killing of George Floyd, for example, it seems likely that Minneapolis officialdom would worked harder to find some sort of plausible deniability shield for officer Derek Chauvin.
Similarly, it's very difficult for Buffalo, New York, to squirm out of the visual indictment provided by video of officers pushing over and then leaving to bleed out 75-year-old activist Martin Gugino. Without the dramatic images it would be easier to make the case for the old "just following procedures" defense offered there by both police and the mayor.
And so it goes as this pocket-sized piece of technology evens the playing field a little as it depicts events that previously might have occurred in darkness.
On the other hand, Photoshop and its cut-rate knockoffs do offer considerable opportunity for altered images --- as we've seen in several of the memes shared by our right-wing friends.
Among those fakes spotted in the last few days --- a depiction of the Lincoln Memorial defaced by graffiti used as a weapon by those desperate to find ammunition for use against now largely peaceful protesters. It's a fake. No vandalism occurred there.
The caution here is a long-standing one --- if it looks too much like what you want to see then take a second look and make sure its an accurate depiction.
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