Comment from Milos Willing
Time January 22, 2009 at 6:29 pm

a brilliant comic

Comment from Von Glitschka
Time January 22, 2009 at 6:30 pm

I’m surprised it took 48hrs for the race card to be played on political cartoons. Obama’s people better get a spine and realize they are fair game just as much as the Bush monkey caricatures we’ve seen for eight years.

Comment from Tracy Karol
Time January 22, 2009 at 6:31 pm

Actually, I think his lips are more purple, but I see no problem with the blue. Works either way. They are what they are. No one complained about stereotyping Bush as a Texan because of his accent, right? Right. And I absolutely LOVE Tony Romo, but let\’s face it, his ears are a bit on the big side.

Go for it. Keep posting!

Comment from dot
Time January 22, 2009 at 6:52 pm

chiming in from twitter, the only thing I can think of on the blue thing is there is a similarity to the racial slur \’blue gums\’. then again, i don\’t think his lips look very blue, either.

Dot

Comment from Sean Swayze
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:00 pm

It’s not atypical for Canadian publications to err on the side of caution, we have quite stringent hate crime laws, and racial stereotyping is definitely frowned upon up here. The Toronto Star is a national newspaper, despite its name and people across the country would see such a comic. Despite not having a defined identity as a country (which ironically is our identity) we are definitely over-polite on occasion, and in this case I think the editorial staff stuffed a winner. There is nothing overtly racist about this characterization and the upper lip is indeed a good caricature of Obama’s own expressive lips…
We’re a bit leery of offending our neighbours to the south as we have many many friends and business ties across the worlds longest undefended border. It’s understandable that around an inauguration that was both a benchmark for the US democracy and also a historical precedent the editors undoubtedly didn’t want to curry a negative backlash from anyone there.

Comment from Rod Davis
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:01 pm

I don’t see where the caricature is racial. I am Black. Stop being so sensitive to an issue that is not suppose to be that way. The President can and does take a joke!

Comment from Shai
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:01 pm

Hi, some feedback from twitter — I agree his lips are more purple, he’s got what some folks call a smokers mouth, (apparently the idea is the smoke turns ur lips black? idk enough about that to know if its true or a saying or what). Im not that sensitive about racial things in cartoons but I do notice them. I dont think I would immediately take offense to a caricature of Obama with big lips but I would wonder why, since he actually has pretty then lips in my opinion. I think the reality is he’s got his own look to him and moreso than racism some cartoonist are still adjusting from drawing Bush. Alot of cartoonists drew Bush kind of monkeyish, certainly for a myriad of reasons, but that doesnt really fit with Obama so on the outset it might raise an eyebrow to make Barack simian-like with no real reason for doing so. I just think cartoonists need to hit the reset button and draw Obama in his very special unique silly ass way.

Comment from Todra
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:18 pm

I don\’t see anything racial about this cartoon. I\’m African-American and I\’m missing the slur here. Is there one or is an editor being overly cautious?

Comment from Thoughtful1
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:22 pm

Tragedy is easy. Comedy, now that’s tough. I think some might be offended by any pallet you might choose because race itself is a social and cultural distinction that is different in different societies. The reaction I had to the blue lips was similar to others. Obama’s lip is more purple or dark mauve. His coloring is different in strong light and on sunny days and in the cold. You have a tough job walking the line between making a generalization and stereotyping. My thought is that you may err on the side of offense by reason of your role in society. The cartoonist is the modern day court jester to the powerful, poking fun at them and at humanity itself. Fewer and fewer of us feel like kings, which is probably why cartoonists are an endangered species.

Comment from Mollena
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:40 pm

I’ve yet to see lip-color as a derogatory stereotype kind of deal. I wonder if the Editor in question is white and was afraid of being branded a racist. Facts is facts, dude has pronounced ears. And dark lips. And the other fact is that caricature specifically exaggerates people’s features. I am bemused by this censorship.

Comment from TAB
Time January 22, 2009 at 7:43 pm

To Sean Swayze,
sorry dude, the Star is not a national paper, I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in Alberta.
And I think that Corrigan’s cartoon is just awful.

Comment from Ann
Time January 22, 2009 at 8:05 pm

Here from Twitter.

I don’t see any blue in his lips, certainly not the almost powder blue in these cartoons.

I think Obama’s most prominent features are his ears and his very long, inverted-triangle face. In fact, the shape of his face from about the nose down looks a lot like the typical Joker from the Batman comic strips. In fact, I’m a bit surprised that no cartoonist took off on it, unless Heath Ledger’s death would have made that seem too tacky for publication. (Either that, or I really am the only one who sees the resemblance.)

Hmmm. You know how historically, the taller candidate wins the presidency? Perhaps another factor is the angle from ear to skull, with the widest angle winning?

Comment from Lisa
Time January 22, 2009 at 8:18 pm

Blue lips to me = death. I don’t see the racial slur here at all.

Comment from slag
Time January 22, 2009 at 8:22 pm

Honestly can’t get behind the blue-lipped Obama. It’s distracting; making me ask “Why are his lips blue?”. And I don’t think it adds much other than possible controversy.

Comment from Amanda
Time January 22, 2009 at 8:37 pm

Coming here, Daryl, from Twitter (I follow u!). I agree with Tracy (commenter). His lips are more a deep purple than blue - and - darker towards the mouth. They seem to lighten in the outter lip area. And to dot\\\’s point…. the \\\’blue gums\\\’ racial slur is still alive & well in the south, unfortunately. I personally hope to see more purple hue in his lip characterizations (sp?), since that would be a more accurate color.

I love your stuff, BTW! You are a very talented man who has brought a smile on my face on more than 1 occasion.

Comment from patrick
Time January 22, 2009 at 10:02 pm

weird that in yesterday\’s Obama cartoon, I had already switched to a darker purple lip from the bright blue…which was more of a design/colour consideration more than anything else.
Anyways he\’s quit smoking and his lips might get back to red eventually.

Comment from TAB
Time January 22, 2009 at 10:20 pm

you stole that puffy sky blue right off my palette… here’s the deal, Eastern Canada gets Obama with purple lips, anything west of Ontario sees him in blue. Watch all the Americans run to google maps to see where Ontario is…
I still think your drawing line is feeble

Comment from cagle
Time January 22, 2009 at 11:06 pm

Hey Amanda, I never heard that about “blue gums” before. Is that what you think when you see the blue lips?
-Daryl

Comment from cagle
Time January 22, 2009 at 11:11 pm

Patrick, are you going with purple? I’ll miss the blue lips.
-Daryl

Comment from patrick
Time January 23, 2009 at 6:33 am

like Oprah, I am endorsing the Color Purple

Comment from Jason Mitchener
Time January 23, 2009 at 12:05 pm

Not racist at all.

Comment from Jimmy P
Time January 23, 2009 at 8:03 pm

I know Patrick. He doesn\’t have any lips. I know TAB and he\’s all lip. Cam will be giving you both a fat lip for stealing his concept.

Comment from Jimmy P
Time January 24, 2009 at 10:34 am

Just saw a clip on Obama. He actually has bluish toned lips. Very observant of Corrigan, TAB and Cam (and probably others). Three of my favourite cartoonists.

Comment from A Radich
Time January 25, 2009 at 3:36 pm

I have to agree with most of the people here, it just seems a little silly. Its a caricature, there’s going to be a certain amount of exaggeration. Personally I love the guy, Obama’s a breath of fresh politics, but just because he’s “black” doesn’t mean he should be immune to satire and inspection. I say “black” in the loosest sense because he is technically multiracial (white mom, black dad) so he’s, in a very real sense, the face of America. In my opinion, NOT caricaturing him based on who he is and what he looks like is the racist thing to do. Like with the whole “instructed to make any crowds of cartoon characters racially diverse, but only diverse in color, not in facial features” type of thing. Color should not be an issue, nor other Physical attributes. We’re all Americans and by definition we’re crazy diverse. Like Obama himself said about america: “(its) a place where one is judged not by their race, but the content of their character”(I’m sure its not word for word but I’m going from memory). The guilt for this touchy-feelyness is on both sides of course but it would be nice if we could just put the past behind us and look forward, no matter who we are, to the future. That and yeah.. what the F is with blue lips? Did Obama forget to pay the heating bill or something? haha

Comment from David
Time January 26, 2009 at 12:19 pm

I’m not getting the blue lips thing at all. If he were standing on an ice flow, maybe…

Comment from Kelly Lieberman
Time February 2, 2009 at 10:55 pm

Blue lips = a liberal message? I like it.

Comment from cagle
Time February 3, 2009 at 12:35 pm

That’s funny, he’s just a big, blue, liberal, wet kisser.

Comment from livejelly
Time February 6, 2009 at 4:14 am

see pic at above link. This was done mid december 08. Blue lips are not just in Canada. great minds think a like Maple leaves are a coincidence. wasn’t thinking blue lips for cold, just happend to use it to add a splash of color. never saw blue lipped obama until today 1/6 . but blue does hav a cool or icy feel to it. but isn’t blue also a reflection or mark of darker skin color in books/artwork?
think there r too many PC related restrictions: hav to take case by case. not advocating extreme measures
but in this field creators just have to know where to draw the line between mean malicious belitling humor and a great caricature without repressed biased censoring of the selectors. Selectors/editors just have to check the balance in the content & the piece. After all political toons & caricatures are to make people think, provoke thought-discussion, make an impact on what is going on in society without tip-toeing. maybe its similar to indy or non mainstreamy creatively experimental artistic efforts.

a msg from arty caricaturist to toony caricaturists