In love with Palestine

Interview I gave to Ebtihal Mahadeen, journalist of The Star magazine, in Amman, Jordan. Thanks for all of your kindness, Ebtihal.

LATUFF: CARTOONIST IN LOVE WITH PALESTINE

Monday, 25 May 2009
By Ebtihal Mahadeen

You have probably seen cartoons by Carlos Latuff during the Israeli aggression on Gaza early this year. Or perhaps you have seen his caricatures of ex-Israeli PM Ariel Sharon, or former US President George W. Bush and UK's PM Tony Blair. If an image speaks a thousand words, it is Latuff's work which holds true to the saying.

Carlos Latuff is a freelance political cartoonist, born in November 30, 1968, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. His work has been published in numerous independent media websites and papers, as well as several Arab media such as the Lebanese al-Akhbar and Saudi magazine Character, among others.

Latuff's work is very popular on the internet and very frequently forwarded in emails. It is also often printed out on T-shirts and posters, and usually present in pro-Palestine demonstrations across the world.
The cartoonist himself was in Amman for the opening of an exhibition of his works in Darat al-Funun as part of the Guardians of Memory Week organized by Hannouneh Group. In an exclusive interview with The Star, Latuff talked about his work.

"I work for leftist trade union papers in Rio area. I also draw cartoons which I publish on the Internet about the Palestinians and Iraqis, and others. But I refuse to get paid for these cartoons, especially for the ones about Palestine. I had offers from people interested in buying the originals and I simply refused because this is artistic activism. I refuse to profit off the Palestinians," he passionately stressed.

Palestine has a soft spot in Latuff's heart and he expresses himself in drawings and words whenever Palestine comes to mind. "The Palestinians have something special about them because I was there in 1998. After talking to ordinary Palestinians and listening to the details of the brutality and violence of the Israeli army it was practically impossible not to be supportive of the Palestinian cause. After 10 years of being involved in the Palestinian cause, it's no longer about the human rights. It's about love. I love the Palestinian people."

As a leftist Latuff believes in internationalism, that is solidarity with the masses all over the world. His cartoon showing Ernesto "Che" Guevara wearing a Palestinian kufiyyeh goes a long way in supporting this international concept. "I like to work with well known symbols and to mix their meanings. In the 60s and 70s, the leftist ideas were popular among the young people all around the world. There were many wars of liberation all around the world, and there was the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, PFLP. So it was very common to see Palestinian guerrillas using the Guevara symbol, because he is the symbol for resistance everywhere. Even to Hizbullah today, the image of Guevara is popular because he is a symbol of resistance," Latuff explained.

With cartoons as heavily charged as his, Latuff's work causes controversy precisely because of their strong symbolic connections. One of the challenges he faced as a pro-Palestinian cartoonist is the all-too-common label of anti-Semitism. He explained the link, "When you decide to support the Palestinian cause you will face the label of anti-Semitism. The reason for this label is this: In the West, to be called anti-Semitic is a heavy accusation because the memories of the Holocaust are too fresh in the minds of people. Hollywood makes a ton of movies about the Holocaust but you never see movies about the suffering of the Palestinians and the Iraqis. The reason for that is to feed the subconscious minds of people that Jews mean Israel, and if Jews are persecuted then the Israelis are persecuted as well. So everything against Israel is considered against Jews, and that is anti-Semitic."
While uncomfortable with the label at first, Latuff got used to it once he understood the politics behind it. Now, he said, he isn't bothered by it as much. "In the past I felt worried but now I understand this is a strategy by the Zionists so I don't care about it anymore. My obligation is to the Palestinians. None of my cartoons are similar to the Nazi cartoons; none of them show Jews with big noses or Jews controlling the world. I am not racist and my activism is not about religion or about the Jews,; it's about the politics, the occupation of Palestinian territories, and imperialism."

Pressures to counter Latuff's pro-Palestinian activism do not stop at the level of accusations of anti-Semitism. His 2002 cartoon series, We Are All Palestinian, drew similarities between the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli occupation and the conditions of other oppressed people. Vietnamese civilians during the American war in Vietnam, Tibetan monks, black South Africans during Apartheid, and others were drawn saying "we are Palestinian". One of the cartoons was particularly unusual; it showed a Jewish boy in the Warsaw ghetto saying "I am Palestinian," and all hell broke loose. Latuff remembered, "When I published this series in IMC Independent Media Center a Jewish organization filed a claim to the police against the cartoon because they considered it anti-Semitic to make any comparisons between the Nazis and the Israelis. So the website was shut down. After this I made other cartoons for IMC in Israel which was edited by Bryan Atinsky, an anti-Zionist Jew; someone called the Internet service provider of the website and told the owner to take the artwork off the site or else he will be killed. After this, Atinsky was visited by police in his home and they took his computer and interrogated him. And all of this happened because of cartoons!"

As Latuff's blunt support for Palestine stepped on many toes, threats were made to silence him. "The website of the Likud party once published an article threatening me, comparing me to the minister of propaganda in Nazi Germany, and claiming that I am the head of the propaganda machine of Iran. They dedicated a whole page for information about me, including my cartoons and a video statement I made about Palestinians, and then they concluded 'This Carlos should have been taken care of long time ago, in some way or another.' What does 'some way or another' mean? The Israel way: Put the magazine, put the bullet in the chamber, and fire," said Latuff.
He then confidently added, "I really don't care. I'm not worried because my duty is far more important than my personal life. To be killed or not makes no difference because I am going to die sooner or later. You can kill the artist but not the art. You can put a bullet in me, but not in my cartoons. I won my personal battle already no matter what they do against me. Only the Highlander lives forever!" he chuckled.

Carlos Latuff is a staunch critic of occupation and oppression, and his work is not limited to the Palestinians. He was arrested three times in Rio de Janeiro for drawing cartoons exposing police brutality and violence in Brazil. Oddly enough, the work of this "artistic activist" as he likes to call himself was initially influenced by apolitical, comedic, American and Japanese cartoons. "You won't believe me but one of my strong artistic influences were the American Hannah-Barbera cartoons and the Japanese anime "Ultraman". In the 70s, I was a shy kid and an only child. I used to spend long hours watching cartoons on TV, and I used to create my own characters as well," he revealed.
Despite his political views and the reach of his controversial cartoons, Latuff made a point of saying he wasn't special. "Sometimes people tend to believe that there's something different about me because I make cartoons. That's not true, I'm a very ordinary person," he concluded.