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November 5, 2007
‘Cartooning for Peace’ features international editorial cartoonists

By Alma Freeman

Cartoons make us laugh. Without them, our lives would be much sadder. But they are no laughing matter: they have the power to inform, and also to offend,” said former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the inaugural “Cartooning for Peace” seminar at the United Nations headquarters in October 2006.

In order to further explore the power of cartoons, The Claus M. Halle Institute for Global Learning hosts 10 editorial cartoonists from around the world who will be on campus Nov. 12–15 to engage with students, faculty and the community for “Cartooning for Peace.”

“Cartooning for Peace” is the brainchild of Plantu, the French daily newspaper Le Monde’s editorial cartoonist. The idea for the project was born in 1991 when Plantu met former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who drew the Star of David for one of Plantu’s drawings and signed it.

“At that time, Yasser Arafat could not say, ‘I recognize the State of Israel,’ and yet, with a blue felt-tip pen he drew the Star of David on the Israeli flag,” said Plantu. The following year, Plantu traveled to Israel and convinced then Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Shimon Peres to sign the same drawing. It was the first time that signatures from both the Israeli government and the Palestine Liberation Organization had been affixed to the same document prior to the 1993 Oslo Accords. “Since that time, I have thought a great deal about the role of newspaper cartoonists,” Plantu said.

Plantu once again realized the power cartoons hold when the world erupted in anger last year over the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. As a forum for such debate, “Cartooning for Peace” launched that same year with a seminar featuring opening remarks by Annan and an exhibition of cartoons, co-sponsored by The Halle Institute, at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

“Cartooning for Peace” at Emory, co-sponsored by the Hightower Fund and a number of departments and programs, will include selections from the original traveling exhibition unveiled at the U.N., as well as an expanded version that will feature more than 100 new cartoons and drawings by the visiting cartoonists on display at the Schatten Gallery from Oct. 27 through Dec. 15.

The collection represents a wide range of issues such as peace, conflict, leadership and the environment. With the support of Raymond Schinazi, Emory professor of pediatrics who played a key role in the development of the anti-HIV drug Emtriva, the exhibition also includes cartoons related to important global health issues as a result of the enormous concentration of expertise at Emory and Atlanta in this field.
While here, the cartoonists will participate in public panels and lectures on the topics of controversy, gender, conflict, global health and political leadership, and will each visit a classroom hosted by Emory professors.

In addition to Plantu, other visiting cartoonists include Baha Boukhari, Jeff Danziger, Liza Donnelly, Michel Kichka, Mike Lukovich, Piyale Madra, Godfrey Mwampembwa, Ann Telnaes and Norio Yamanoi.

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