racism – mackaycartoons

Wednesday October 25, 2017

October 24, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday October 25, 2017

Trudeau, Scheer and Singh do the math in Quebec and none champion an anti-racist stance

The tepid response from federal leaders to Quebec’s ill-conceived and offensive Bill 62 tells us three truths about Canadian politics.

They are not comfortable truths.

September 14, 2013

It tells us that all three major party leaders may harbour suspicions that the bill forcing face coverings to be removed while accessing public services may be more popular both inside and outside Quebec than what might be expected.

They may be right. This has all the trappings of a Donald Trump presidential run or a Brexit referendum in that the louder the protestations and the deeper the indignation of the mainstream pundits, editorial boards and the elite, the more popular the candidate or the legislation.

Secondly, it tells us that the further from power one is, the easier it is to be the champion of rights and liberties.

And thirdly, because it is Quebec, we know that any federal intervention is seen as a political third rail, which would not be the case if, say, a government in Manitoba or Nova Scotia had passed such legislation.

This is particularly true when the Quebec premier is a federalist.

No one wants to poke the hibernating PQ bear, everyone is leery of meddling in provincial jurisdiction, particularly when you have opposition parties who believe Premier Philippe Couillard’s absurd bill does not go far enough. (Source: Toronto Star)

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Wednesday September 13, 2017

September 12, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday September 13, 2017

Jagmeet Singh praised for ‘calm and positive’ reaction to anti-Muslim heckler

Federal NDP leadership hopeful Jagmeet Singh is garnering praise for the way he reacted to a woman who accused him last week of supporting Islamic extremism, because he chose to come out against “all forms of hate” instead of emphasizing that he is Sikh rather than Muslim.

August 3, 2017

The Ontario MPP was interrupted by an angry heckler at a meet and greet last Wednesday in Brampton, Ont. The woman stood in front of the candidate and shouted as aides tried to usher her aside in an incident that was caught on video and shared widely on social media well beyond Canada’s borders.

The woman accused Singh of wanting to impose Shariah law, an Islamic legal code based on the Qur’an, and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood, an 89-year-old religious and political group. The exchange was caught on video and lasted more than four minutes.

“Many people have commented that I could have just said I’m not Muslim. In fact, many have clarified that I’m actually Sikh,” Singh explained in a statement.

“While I’m proud of who I am, I purposely didn’t go down that road because it suggests their hate would be OK if I was Muslim.”

A political science professor told CBC News on Monday that Singh took the right approach.

“It suggests the fact that he is not Muslim is irrelevant,” said Erin Tolley, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto.

“You can just imagine for example a white politician standing in front of a room and heard something racist being said. The exact wrong reaction is to say, ‘Well, I’m white, I’m not a person of colour, so this isn’t important to me.’”

Singh wanted to defuse the situation, she said, highlighting that hate of all forms is wrong, whether it’s directed at your community or not.

His response also signals that Singh, who wears a turban, has experience dealing with direct threats because of his outwardly religious appearance. (Source: CBC News)

This cartoon received an unusual amount of criticism through the mackaycartoons Facebook Page:

Republished in a number of publications. Below the Edmonton Journal and the Western Star, Corner Brook, Newfoundland:

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Friday August 18 2017

August 17, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday August 18 2017

Donald Trump is burning every bridge he can, 1 tweet at a time

November 9, 2016

Before 9:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, the President of the United States had already:

Attacked not one but two sitting senators of his own party.
Savaged the “fake” news media.
Tripled down on his comments regarding the removal of a Robert E. Lee statue in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Echoed the rhetoric of the far right by insisting that our “culture” was being destroyed by the cult of political correctness.

Donald Trump did all of these things via Twitter — starting at 6:19 a.m. ET with a tweet alleging that “publicity seeking” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) had purposely contorted his comments after the violent white supremacist protests over the weekend and ending at 9:21 a.m. ET with a slippery slope argument that liberals were responsible for the “beauty that is being taken out of our cities, towns and parks” by calling for the removal of statues honoring Confederates.

July 28, 2017

So, for three hours — at least — the most powerful person in the world was glued to social media, gleefully settling scores.

This is not a new reality for Trump. Since he became a candidate, he has used Twitter as a combination of a focus group and a blowtorch.

During the 2016 campaign, Trump would regularly try out new attack lines — “Lyin’ Ted,” “Little Marco” — on Twitter to see if his fans responded to them. If they did, those attacks were quickly inserted into his stump speech or his debate answers.

He would also use Twitter to fight back against his critics, to lambast the media and to, generally speaking, provoke. (Never forget: Trump is, at root, a provocateur more than he is a politician.)

November 9, 2016

Despite his promises to be “so presidential you will be so bored” if elected, Trump hasn’t changed one iota. That’s most obvious in his Twitter habits. While he went through patches — a few days, maybe a week — early in his presidency when he would lay off Twitter entirely or only tweet his speeches or other more generic political pap, Trump has always returned to his Twitter addiction with a vengeance.

His tweets have produced many of the defining moments of his presidency — none of which are good. His March tweet that President Barack Obama had wire-tapped Trump Tower during the 2016 campaign sparked weeks of questions — zero of which he could answer. His repeated attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell helped to turn Republicans in the Senate against him. His personal attack on MSNBC anchor Mika Brzezinski was roundly denounced by politicians — and humans — of all stripes. (Source: CNN)

November 10, 2016

Meanwhile, for about two hours on Monday August 21, weather permitting, the entire US should see the moon slide in front of the sun. The last solar eclipse to slice across the entire continent happened 99 years ago; unlike that event, this eclipse will occur in an era of record internet usage — one in which 95% of American adults own a mobile phone. (Source: Business Insider)

Letter to the Editor (Hamilton Spectator – August 24)

Most now can’t even stand Trump’s voice

RE: MacKay editorial cartoon Aug. 18

I loved Graeme MacKay’s succinct and very timely cartoon Friday of Trump as a dark cloud, the eclipse, over the U.S., dividing the country in two with his overly-long trademark red tie. Unfortunately it also lumped more progressive “blue states”, e.g. California, in with the south, but the point was well made. It should also be made clear that many people, perhaps now even a majority of southerners who once liked and believed in him, can no longer can support or even stand listening to the voice of their insecure, paranoid and narcissistic, therefore very dangerous, “leader”.

In case you missed Anderson Cooper’s CNN interview with Tony Schwartz, ghostwriter of Trump’s “Art of the Deal”, he predicts Trump will resign before he is impeached, naturally blaming everyone else along the way for his dramatic failure. Hopefully this happens very soon and in time to relinquish his power to pardon his cronies and even family members for their crimes committed by association with this very sick man. SAD!

John Royds, Carlisle

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Tuesday August 15, 2017

August 14, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday August 15, 2017

Under pressure, Trump condemns neo-Nazis, supremacists and KKK: ‘Racism is evil’

President Donald Trump denounced the Ku Klux Klan and neo-Nazis by name Monday and announced that the Justice Department has launched a civil rights investigation into the killing of a counterprotester at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the weekend as he sought to tamp down mounting criticism of his initial response to the violence.

June 9, 2016

“Anyone who acted criminally in this weekend’s racist violence, you will be held accountable,” Trump said in brief remarks to reporters in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, where he returned after a week of vacation in Bedminster, N.J. “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence. It has no place in America.”

Trump added: “Racism is evil and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other hate groups that are repugnant to all that we hold dear as a nation.”

The statement came two days after he failed to specifically condemn the white supremacist rally after a woman was killed and as many as 19 wounded by a driver who reportedly espoused racist and pro-Nazi sentiments and had taken part in the “Unite the Right” march in Charlottesville.

On Saturday, Trump condemned “the egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides,” sparking sharp criticism from Democrats, civil rights proponents and some Republicans for failing to single out and condemn the white supremacists who sparked the violence.

On Monday, Kenneth C. Frazier, CEO of Merck, said in a tweet that he was resigning from Trump’s American Manufacturing Council, saying he was doing so “as a matter of personal conscience” and that “America’s leaders must honor our fundamental values by clearly rejecting expressions of hatred, bigotry and group supremacy, which run counter to the American ideal that all people are created equal.”

Trump had been under increasing pressure to call out the groups by name after his previous remarks bemoaning violence on “many sides” prompted criticism from fellow Republicans as well as Democrats. (Source: National Post)

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Thursday June 9, 2016

June 8, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday June 9, 2016

Paul Ryan stresses party unity in GOP meeting

House Speaker Paul Ryan reiterated his support Wednesday for Donald Trump at a closed door meeting with House Republicans and asked his colleagues to unite behind the presumptive Republican nominee, according to several members who attended the session.

Ryan’s backing of Trump comes a day after he blasted the businessman’s remarks about a federal judge as a “textbook definition of a racist comment.”

June 4, 2016

Trumps comments have sparked a fury on Capitol Hill where many Republicans worry that Trump’s racially tinged criticism of Judge Gonzalo Curiel could ultimately hurt down-ballot GOP candidates competing in congressional races this year.

Though Ryan didn’t back away from his endorsement, he said he would continue to speak out when he believed the billionaire businessman makes inappropriate statements.

Ryan spokesman said the speaker did not “urge” the party to fall in line behind Trump but stressed the importance of unity.

Ryan “just reaffirmed his disagreement with the comment, respecting that the people have elected Donald Trump as our Republican nominee and what we’re going to do is we’re going to use our position in a positive way to help America out,” said Rep. Tom Reed, R-N.Y.

Trump tried to quell some of the outrage on Tuesday, releasing a statement saying his past remarks had been misconstrued, and Trump avoided the topic all together during a speech he gave later that evening.

Rep. Bill Flores, R-Texas, chairman of the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative group in Congress, said Trump needs to “quit spending time bashing judges.” He will vote for Trump, he said, but, “I don’t endorse people that bash judges — based on his ethnic heritage.” (Source: CNN)