TEHRAN- Comic books have long been a source of humor and entertainment for children and some adults. However, some journalists and cartoonists have tried to express serious and sometimes tragic issues, diverging from the dominance of vibrant superheroes and cheerful content, leading to the emergence of comic journals. These artists are using their medium to address important world issues and shed light on human suffering.

Among these comic artists is American cartoonist and journalist Sarah Glidden. During her trip to the occupied territories, Glidden encountered the truth of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which was contrary to the narrative of the so-called "unbiased" mainstream media. She turns her travel story into a graphic novel. The cartoonist also traveled to Syria and Iraq and paints another report of truth with watercolors; "Rolling Blackouts: Dispatches from Turkey, Syria, and Iraq" published in 2016.

In an interview with Tehran Times, Glidden compared comics journalism with other news mediums and explained: “I think with comics journalism, there is no lie about ‘objectivity’ as there is often in normal news reports. With a comic, we can see that someone has drawn the page, so we are reminded that there is a human being behind the work. “

Highlighting the impact of Joe Sacco's graphic novel "Palestine," she emphasized how Sacco includes himself in the story, underscoring that he was actively engaging in conversations and interviews with people. 

 “In a way, it makes us trust him more, because we know he isn’t pretending to be some dispassionate observer. He is a human being with other human beings. Through drawings, we can really get to know the people whose stories are being told,” she added.

Reflecting on her personal connection to Palestine and her motivation for creating her first work, she expressed, “As an American Jew, I had grown up being told that Israel was my country too. But the more I learned about the occupation and the way that country was created, the more questions I had. It felt very painful that this place that was supposed to be "mine" was oppressing another people so terribly. I was curious how a birthright trip would talk about it. I did feel responsible for it, not only as a Jewish American but also as an American whose U.S. tax dollars support it.”

She also expressed her emotions as a Jew in response to Israel's recent genocide in Gaza: “I'm angry. And extremely sad.  There are many Jewish groups here who are actively protesting this, calling for a ceasefire, saying ‘not in our name,’ calling our American politicians and telling them to stop sending military aid to Israel, and yet it has not stopped the killing. I'm sick about it. We don't know what to do. It's truly sickening.” 

Reflecting on her admiration for Joe Sacco, a pioneer in comics journalism, she shared whether she had encountered Sacco and his works before creating her first graphic novel: “I had not yet met Joe at that point, nor many cartoonists for that matter, as I had recently begun creating comics myself. However, his book ‘Palestine’ was among the first graphic novels I had read, possibly around 2002.”

Born in Malta in 1960 to an engineer father and a teacher mother, Joe Sacco spent part of his childhood in Australia before moving with his family to the United States at the age of 12. While living in Berlin in the early 90s, curiosity and a feeling that he was not hearing the whole story - "American coverage of the Middle East is very shallow" - propelled him to Gaza. 

In 1992, Sacco published his report of this trip in a 9-issue graphic novel "Palestine". The book, which was the result of interviews with Palestinians and the occupiers and narrated the history of the expulsion of the Palestinians and the beginning of the intifada, was able to win the 1996 American Book Award and was highly praised.

Gary Groth, co-founder of Fantagraphics, which published the graphic novel, told the Guardian that after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent bombing of Gaza demand for the book had soared. 

Glidden remarked on Sacco's "Palestine": “Before reading this book, I really had no idea that comics could be used to talk about the real world, about serious issues, about true stories, I had thought they were only for superheroes and funny things, as was most common in the U.S. His work opened my eyes to a new form of comics, but also to the reality of the Israeli occupation, which I knew little about at the time. It is an impressive work.” 

The American cartoonist noted her admiration for Sacco's book "Palestine," stating, “It has been widely read by those already familiar with comics. With the Palestinian situation receiving global attention, I believe its readership will expand even further. It surprises me that prior to October 7, many individuals in the U.S. and worldwide were unfamiliar with the conflict. As awareness grows, I anticipate more people will seek out books like 'Palestine' to gain a deeper understanding of the history.”

Glidden expressed her desire to explore Gaza, similar to Sacco, and create a comic about it. “It's a regret of mine that I didn't get to visit during my initial trip. I have since visited the West Bank, where I had a wonderful experience and created some short comics about the remarkable Palestinian individuals I encountered. However, I am eager to return and create more work. I can only hope that Gaza remains standing after the Israeli offensive. The current situation is truly heartbreaking.”

Following this graphic novel, Sacco traveled to Bosnia to document the truth of the Bosnian war, resulting in the creation of two novels, "Safe Area Goražde" and "The Fixer." "Safe Area Goražde" focuses on Goražde, which is a Bosnian Muslim area.

This American-Maltese journalist then returned to Palestine to cover the story of Rafah and Khan Yunis massacre by Israel in 1956 in "Footnotes in Gaza". After the publication of this graphic novel, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz accused Sacco of distortion, bias and hyperbole. In a report from this newspaper, leading Israeli military historian Meir Pail stated, “It's a big exaggeration. There was never a killing of such a degree. Nobody was murdered. I was there. I don't know of any massacre.”

The strong backlash from Zionist currents towards Sacco's work not only highlights the importance of doing justice to Palestine but also emphasizes the potential influence of comic journals in broader political and social spheres.

AH/SAB