Lalo Alcaraz, La Cucaracha, and Politics

Because my precious Boondocks has been out of the papers for years and the TV show lacks the current news satire that I so desperately need, I turn to Lalo Alcaraz semi-regularly. What initially drew me to him was the Mexican-American artist's Beandocks series, an Afro-Latino version of The Boondocks with Huey and Caesar discussing politics and current events. Sure, it's not really funny compared to Aaron McGruder's Boondocks, but it's something! Unfortunately, we can't wake up every morning and read the rantings of an angry black kid in the newspapers like we used to, but this ain't the worst.

Anywho, upon discovering Alcaraz's homage to The Boondocks, I began reading La Cucaracha online at gocomics.com. From what I can tell, the series relies too heavily on it being 'new' and accessible to the growing Latino population in the United States. Indeed, with a name like cucaracha and mostly Latino (Mexicans, to be precise), the series often features some rather lame or generic 'ethnic humor' or repetitive references to anti-Mexican, anti-immigrant, and racist comments from Republicans. Unlike Aaron McGruder, Alcaraz is seemingly incapable of poking fun at the insanity of the two-party system of two parties with remarkably more in common than one would think. 

Though I still enjoy some of his work, Alcaraz must move beyond simply criticizing Republicans (it's not like Republicans are the only ones who hate brown people in America, wake up!). Ultimately, without a deeper analysis of the structural issues plaguing US society, Alcaraz can be seen as a run of the mill liberal Latino invested in the Democratic system. Yes, you can and should mock and deride and call out Republicans, but without doing the same for Obama and the Dems, La Cucaracha becomes explicitly pro-Democrat. It's like watching MSNBC, they spend so much time criticizing the Republicans without any real substantive critiques of Obama, thus falling into the trap of the two-party system.

Moreover, if Alcaraz watches the television version of Huey Freeman, he would know Huey was rightfully skeptical of any change in the US racial order occurring because of Obama's election. I wish his Beandocks characters could shift to a more radical political orientation and eschew some of the preconceived notions of US politics of today. You know, think outside the box and look to 'radical' alternatives to the status quo. Even if part of the reason we laughed while reading about the black nationalist and socialist views of Huey (or his conspiracy theories, such as an anti-Santa concoction linking him to the War on Drugs, spying, and alien technology), at least McGruder provided some radical perspective in mainstream newspapers that, such as in the 2000 election, led to Huey endorsing Ralph Nader, or, in other cases, criticizing the Democrats for running weak candidates in 2000 and 2004 (as well as generally lacking spines and pursuing similar policies as right-wingers).

In case we forget, Huey also quite ostensibly advocated for socialist and black nationalist perspectives on racial inequality, the media, capitalism, protecting the environment, and education. Alacaraz, on the other hand, offers simpler satire on issues such as the emphasis on testing and other 'education reform' initiatives that hinder learning for Latino schoolchildren. Huey is by far a more interesting, progressive, and captivating voice in the history of American newspaper strips than anything in the oeuvre of Alcaraz. However, Alcaraz does do something innovative with such an open and out pro-Latino, Mexican-centered comic that is not afraid to call out racism and xenophobia. It's refreshing to see that necessary voice in the comics so Latinos, now the largest 'minority,' are not silenced in the black-white racial dichotomy folks like myself tend to focus on. If only the series featured some characters who were not Mexican-Americans to illustrate the diversity of the 'Latino' experience in the US. I suppose one could say that the Afro-Latino Beandocks kinda does that, right?

Alcaraz, to his credit, demonstrates how race is much bigger than blacks or whites in the US, and clearly reveals his allegiance to a sometimes poorly conceived notion of a broad people of color alliance that is generally tied to Democrats, liberals, and the left. Of course, such a belief ignores the plethora of evidence of conservative-leaning Latinos, such as Cuban-Americans or many 'white Latinos' (Latino is really a 'race' if you read US Census data), but the naive idealism can be comforting and unity among people of color is generally a goal I admire. We face similar struggles, might as well come together if we can to promote our mutual interests, at least to the degree cross-racial collaboration can be fruitful. Certainly the question of Afro-Latinos is of special pertinence to African-Americans and other folks of African descent, and could perhaps be one of many bridges to foster solidarity between Latinos and blacks.

All things considered, I will continue to read Alcaraz semi-regularly. His liberal presence with a Latino emphasis contributes to the diversity of political opinions in the media (even if it's not quite as revolutionary as I would like) as well as the significance of  Every once in a while he will make you laugh, as in the above strip during the recent government shutdown. The Republicans, Tea Party supporters, and many folks in general don't know a thing about the Affordable Care Act, but if you label it Obamacare, it becomes this evil act of socialism or slavery. I don't care for Obama or the black misleadership class, but it's hard not to laugh at the absurdity of the right and the white backlash against the First Black Prez. 

Haiti, Soulouque, and US and French Political Cartoons and Caricatures

Political cartoon from 1839 satirizing the 'gag rule' in Congress which prohibited discussion of slavery and abolition. Obviously that didn't quite pan out in the end, but here John Quincy Adams is shown cowering at the frown of a Whig supporter of slavery. Adams is shown with abolitionist newspapers and a resolution to recognize Haiti.See, Haiti appears in US political culture throughout the 19th century. Note to self, read more about Adams and his support for abolitionist causes and recognition of Haiti. 

Source: http://primarysourcenexus.org/2012/04/featured-image-abolition-frowned-down/

"Horizontal print caricaturing the self-made emperor of Haiti and his court. Soulouque wears an elaborate military uniform and a crown. He holds a sword in his right hand and beckons to another man with his left, saying, "Come along niggar, come along, dont be affraid, we's flesh & blood like youself ... now den, I Soloque emqeror [sic] ob Hayti by de autoity in my west do create de, grand duke ob de emqire [sic]." The future grand duke, also in elaborate uniform with large plumes, bows before him as a member of the audience encourages him to bow lower. At right, three figures identified below the image as resident English, American, and French men complain of the smell, the Englishman holding a scent bottle to his nose and the Frenchman retching, and discuss the preference of "colored people" for "monarchial forms & ceremony." At right, a woman identified as the empress slouches low on her throne. A young man in cap and gown is identified as the prime minister."

American caricature of Soulouque and his nobility. In truth, Soulouque's nobility was preposterous, but the racist discourse attributed to Soulouque's faction (which seems to draw on stereotypes of African-American vernacular english in 1849 or 1850) clearly reveals how, to US whites, all blacks are the same: equally inferior. Blacks, according to the English, French, and American at the right in the image smell bad and prefer a monarchical form of government, presumably due to some racist myths about blacks being too dumb or savage to understand democracy and restraint. See, part of the reason I am fascinated by Haitian history is how well it parallels 20th and 21st century Western discourse on post-colonial Africa. Much like Mobutu's Congo/Zaire or more recently, Mugabe's Zimbabwe, whites in Europe and North America use their media (which of course includes political cartoons) to ridicule and perpetuate racist exaggerations and beliefs about the incapacity for blacks to, for instance, build democratic states, or a play on the ludicrous monarchical or imperial titles of ex-slaves and their descendants. You know, things haven't changed much since the mid-19th century, Western discourse and media coverage on Africa or predominantly black countries continues to rely on similar tactics and stereotypes.

Source: http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2008661810/

http://www.worldcat.org/title/soloque-emperor-of-hayti-creating-a-grand-duke/oclc/191120462

French caricaturist Daumier loved to insult Soulouque, comparing him quite obviously to apes in the timeless white tradition of anti-black racism for the last few centuries. Like my post on orangutans, black women, and Bushmen explains, the growing influence of scientific racism and other pseudoscience helped promote such vile and offensive portrayals of we people who are darker than blue. 

Source: http://bir.brandeis.edu/handle/10192/3577

Another Daumier piece from the same site as the above image. Self-explanatory and clearly satirical, since Soulouque would likely never have gotten away with or dared try to force a European journalist into a cauldron. This image is from 1850 while the above is from 1856, which, if I remember correctly, was one year after Soulouque's failed second invasion of the Dominican Republic.