Issue date: 11/20/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Alan Walsh Keith 'Keef' Knight, author of 'K Chronicles' comic strip addresses the audience at the South Ballroom of the SUMC last night.

Keith Knight, author of the comic series "The K Chronicles," spoke to a group of roughly 100 students and community members Wednesday night at the Student Union Memorial Center about the now-infamous cartoon.

While Daily Wildcat editors said that the timing of the cartoon was unfortunate, what was even more unfortunate was the outrage that has resulted from its publication on Nov. 5, Knight said.

"I held off on this for the longest time, because the whole campaign was so long. Then someone wrote to me and said, 'How come you haven't done anything about the election?'" Knight said. "I was afraid to do it because I knew it would be taken out of context and something would happen and it would be blown up into this whole huge controversy and that's exactly what happened."

Like many of his cartoons, this one was based on a real situation in which a Barack Obama campaign worker encountered a couple who referred to the then-presidential candidate with a racial slur.

"It was such a unique situation and such an odd and weird and slightly, slightly hopeful situation that I was like, 'Wow this couple was willing to call this guy the worst thing that he can be called and elect him to be the most powerful person in the world.' That's the most bizarre thing I have ever heard," Knight said.

Wendy Theodore, an assistant professor in African American studies, said that since this comic has been published, it is now up to the public discourse to carry out a full discussion on the role that racism actually plays in society.

"The comic strip's job is to put the thoughts out, and it is our job to pick them up and run with them and bring out a broader conversation," Theodore said. "I was surprised to see students that I see using 'the N-word' every day upset about the comic strip."

Theodore said that it is no longer an issue of whether this word should be used. It is now an issue of how to avoid its future use.

"It's less important on some levels that the N-word was used," Theodore said. "It is more important to have a conversation about why we continue to use fighting words."

Continued...

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