http://www.thedonutproject.com/inspiration/dont-ask-dont-tell/
http://www.cleveland.com/darcy/index.ssf/2010/12/war_over_dont_ask_dont_tell_re.html
examine the two cartoons carefully and answer the following questoins.
1. How does this cartoon compare to the article?
2. Does the cartoon agree or disagree with the article?
3.How does the author approach the issue of don’t ask don’t tell?
4.Do any details strike you in any of the cartoons?
As some of you may know, The Don't Ask Don't Tell policy is now banned in the United States, but what it served as is important to know. 1. It prohibited servicemen from expressing in anyway, any type of homosexual gesture. 2. Servicemen were not allowed to investigate or "ask" if someone was gay unless that person did something that was against the policy.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, to go along with the questions above, think of "What the author's stance is?" "How does he/she show their stance?"
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ReplyDeleteBefore this discussion becomes all about views on the military’s former policy on homosexual service, let me elaborate on Luke’s explanation on the subject. The military didn’t establish this policy to infringe on the rights of homosexuals. In fact, this is quite to the contrary of their intent. Before don’t ask/don’t tell, gays were not allowed to serve in the military at all. This policy was enacted in order to protect homosexuals who are serving. There are many ignorant people in this world. Just because people put on a uniform does not make them any less ignorant. In basic training, you are taught that there are no other colors than green (for the army, blue for the Air Force, etc.) This thought process doesn’t apply only to race, but to all facets of individuality, to include race, religion, where you are from, and homosexuality. This policy was there to help people not think about those kinds of things when looking at a Soldier, but simply to view said Soldier as simply that: a Soldier in the United States Army. So, while the policy has now been changed, as a former Soldier, I can tell you that it hasn’t made one bit of difference. Every Soldier understands the ultimate sacrifice made by some, and will salute their coffin as it passes by for the final trip home, whether that Soldier was gay or not. So, all that being said, I encourage everyone here to look at these political cartoons as simply cartoons that were probably authored by someone who has never served, and has no idea about how the current service men and women feel about this subject. We already knew what they were trying to say.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, let me say that the cartoon of the flagged draped coffins is extremely offensive to me. If it is offensive to me, then it is probably offensive to many others, and may not have the desired effect of the author on his audience. The fact that anyone would use an image depicting people (and inadvertently their families) who have given the ultimate sacrifice to advance any agenda is appalling. Now, that being said, I will attempt to suspend my judgment in support of this exercise.
ReplyDeleteThese two political cartoons seem to be pretty straight forward. I believe the authors of these cartoons could have a couple of different views on the subject. One possibility is the authors are neutral. This is reinforced by the fact that both of these images depict a situation in which it doesn’t matter the sexual orientation of the service member. In the first image, all of them are dead, and in the second, all of the Marines are taking part in one of the most historic war photos in this country’s history. Another possibility is the authors are against the “Don’t ask/don’t tell” policy for the same reasons listed above. What is interesting in these cartoons versus most of the other cartoons we have talked about is that they require the words in order to get their point across. If there were no captions, these would simply be cartoons about Iwo Jima, and 3 dead people who served their country. (I phrased it that way because, members of the military are not the only ones who have a flag draped over their coffin.) As far as any correlation between the article and the cartoons, I believe the only thing they have in common is the homosexual theme. The sheriff was not fired or discharged from service because he was gay, (which before the repeal is what would happen in the military if you were openly gay), nor was he fired from the campaign. He voluntarily stepped down so he could deal with his public image. That is in no way the same as being involuntarily booted out of the military, even though it is an honorable discharge. Now, if the sheriff is not re-elected because he is gay, then there might be more similarities.
I found this post in the thread comments from the “coffin” source. I thought this was interesting, and maybe someone would like to comment on it. This is an example of how the author offended some in his target audience, and therefore was not as effective as he could have been.
ReplyDelete“This cartoon is still being circulated by well-intentioned opponents of the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy. As a gay man who served honorably in the US Army, I also oppose the discriminatory DADT policy. I'd like to go on record, however, as being sick to my stomach from the use of this particular means to an end. I almost feel compelled to apologize for it - especially to my network of friends and family for whom the military plays or has played an important role in their lives.
Images of young Americans in flag-draped coffins are not appropriate pawns for any of us to use for advancing political agendas.
As a veteran and an American, I find the use of images like this to be profoundly disrespectful of military families and in very poor taste. I don't care what your issue is.
If anyone was offended by the image, I hope they realize it was probably propagated by someone unfamiliar with the military who hadn't really thought through the pain it might unwittingly cause a large number of Americans who have borne great personal and family sacrifices. They probably saw the image and had the knee-jerk reaction to pass it along as evidence of their feeling that discrimination of any sort is wrong. I look forward to the day when we can all agree on that point. Until then, please know there are hundreds of thousands of opponents of the DADT policy who support, respect and honor the US military. They are not mutually exclusive, even if they get twisted around sometimes to look that way.”
Posted by: Todd H | September 21, 2009 10:20 AM
Sorry I keep posting like this, but I just thought of another thing. These two cartoons are no longer timley or relevent. The DoD has done away with don't ask/ don't tell. So, any argument about this policy is now null and void.....
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the above comments clearly this issue lacks timeliness and relevance, but i still find these two cartoon rather compelling. On a hot button issue as this one it is very hard to suspend judgment, but i believe both of these cartoonists do great jobs of getting the anti-dont ask don't tell point across. Usually black and white colors are representative of blandness or dullness but in this case the Black and white american flags wrapped over the coffins have a power message of unity. The authors goal of these pieces are to step back from the political jargon and debates and to show that the reality is gay or not all these men are dead from serving their country. The question and the bottom of the first one shows a sense of sarcasm, and the fact of the history quiz on the second one shows a side of sarcasm as well. That questions of sexuality are not important and its not like they show up in history books and quizzes.
ReplyDeleteCompared to the article, these cartoons have not necessarily a positive view of homosexuality in the armed forces, but a tolerant one. The cartoons disagree with the article because they promote the idea that even if a soldier is homosexual, they are still an American soldier and should be respected for the service they have given to our country. The artist approaches the issue of “Don't ask, don't tell” by depicting a familiar picture or scene one would see in relation to the military. The caption is like a quiz question that where it asks the viewer to pick which soldier was gay. The artist wants the viewers to see that despite a soldier’s sexual orientation, they are still a soldier who was brave enough to fight for our country. They deserve the same respect as any other soldier. A striking detail from the cartoons is that in each of them, nothing is meant to stand out. No shading or marks of any kind make a certain soldier or casket stand out. The artist probably depicted the pictures this way so the viewer would understand that a soldier’s sexual orientation does not make him different from any other soldier. The author believes that people should accept homosexual soldiers and be proud of them as they would any other solider.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you picked up on the fact that in both cartoons nothing really stands out. That is a great insight and I believe the author did that completely on purpose. It does seem to represent how a gay soldier should not be viewed any different from any other soldiers.
DeleteLike Josh said that the caskets with the American flags could be any person, not just a military personnel; so does this suggest the author believes this DADT policy influenced gays not in the military to use the same policy. Because gays were not accepted to the military because of their sexual orientation, this may have pushed them away from other aspects of life in terms of coming out. There are many different ways we can go with this, so keep pushing..
ReplyDeleteThe cartoons are a lot more straightforward than the article when giving an opinion on gay people. The cartoonists argue that it doesn't matter if you are gay, we are all Americans and are fighting for the same cause. The article goes in a different direction and shows how this sheriff revealing that he is gay is going to hurt his image. The artists most likely do not care much for the don't ask/don't tell policy because as they see it, they don't care whether or not a soldier is gay. The first cartoon shows three coffins that are exactly the same and asks the audience to pick out the gay one proving that the first cartoonist doesn't care which one of them was gay. The 2nd cartoon depicts the famous picture of the men raising the flag at Iwo Jima and asks which of them are gay or are they just all Americans without the label "gay" or "straight." The 2nd cartoonist obviously doesn't care either whether or not a soldier is gay as long as they are fighting for America and what it stands for.
ReplyDeleteIn the cartoon, unlike the article, the author is seeming to argue that sexuality does not affect credibility, because all soldiers are fighting for their country. I think the author is supportive of the army whether or not there are gay people serving. The "answers" suggest the different ways that americans view sexuality or DADT.
ReplyDeleteOne way this could be viewed is americans categorize soldiers in "straight" and "gay". But I also think this cartoon can also be how people were "supposed" to label soldiers as American, not by sexual preference.
The meaning of this cartoon could go either way for me.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Haley, as unlike the article, the author is seeming to argue that sexuality does not affect credibility. They are contradictory of each other. The author does not care whether or not gay people are serving in our military, and from the article, supports don't ask, don't tell. I thought that the cartoon with the coffins was very striking. A soldier's death should be honored and is a serious thing since they risked their lives for our country. When people argue that gay people should not be in the military, it gives them a bad image. A gay person risked their life for you, but you're unappreciative. That can make people look terrible.
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