Dystopian Comics Are Inherently Political
Apparently “No Politics” translates to “No politics that don’t align with my own”. I found this out from a friend of mine, which explains to me why in right-wing graphic novel groups, despite the fact that people say no politics that don’t align with me own, if anything politics is completely allowed if it aligns perfectly with the host of that youtube channel.
The purpose, so far, seems to be to keep Left-Wing graphic novel novel people in lockstep with channels that tout right-wing talking points. So if you’re more left-wing than even Liberals, than you’re not allowed to communicate such. Which puts people in the Libertarian Left circle ( in my case Transhumanist and Green ) in a tricky situation.
Which is a shame, because a lot of right-wing channels frequently make empty vacuous virtual signaling phrases that make them seem like enlightened left centrists, but in effect means that while they say vaguely progressive things, in practice they advocate a suppression of free speech that puts them in the same camp as Puritans and the Religious Right.
In one specific area this one guy is talking about Unions in Comic Book circles. This one guy I had beeen subscribed to for a while, basically misrepresented what people said about wanting to negotiate for better pay and benefits, with wanting to start a union. A part of me suspects the person is not even smart enough to know the difference between Worker-Ownership of production, and Top-Down Union structure. And everyone in the comments section basically has to agree with this asshole, lest they are ostracized by that group.
This other channel talks about this gigantic financial loss that DC comics just got hit with in comics, upward to 25% which would basically kill a small time crowd funding publisher. And yet you’re not able to talk about owning the means of your own production: oh by self-publishing is OK apparently. As long as it aligns with the self-publishing model they want you to do, and not any kind of alternative self-publishing model.
We need to stop speaking past each other in the comics community, otherwise we’re all going to be screwed over by the pandemic, and not just “excessively political” people in comics. Or rather, people who view any opinions that don’t align with their own as being excessively political.
Imagine if I told them that I write dystopian fiction, and the entire point of the graphic novel series is that it is set in an economic collapse in the 2010s, and after the US broke into smaller nations, it left what was once the United States unable to cope with foreign invaders? Well that certainly doesn’t align with the politics of these right-wing whack jobs.
Personally, I’m of the opinion you can write ANY controversial opinion in a novel or comic book, and still find a way to make that a compelling story: even if that’s a fantasy world where men are shot in a firing squad, and women are beheaded on the guillotine. What it seems like they are asking, if for people to go against their brand, by not talking about politics, even though their own graphic novel is political in nature.
To such, I ask you to please fuck off.