| A poignant New Yorker cover by TOON's R. Kikuo Johnson sparks a conversation on social media "The mother in the drawing is made up of all these women" Take a Look at the Full Interview As a cartoonist, you frequently play with symbols and stereotypes. What were you trying to accomplish when portraying an Asian mother and child? I began preparing for this project by revisiting news coverage of anti-Asian hate crimes committed during the pandemic. As I absorbed one account after another, they became increasingly difficult to read. So many mothers and grandmothers have been targeted. I imagined my own mom in that situation. I thought about my grandma and my aunt, who have been among my greatest sources of support. The mother in the drawing is made up of all these women. —R. Kikuo Johnson in a New Yorker interview with Françoise Mouly. Multiple news sites have picked up the story The New Yorker Makes Subtle but Powerful Point About Anti-Asian Violence on New Cover | HuffPost As a collector of New Yorker covers, this one represents a poignant reminder of the times and will hold a special place in my collection. #StopAsianHate #StopAAPIHate | Senator Mazie Hirono @maziehirono (502.8K followers) New Yorker Magazine’s latest cover is garnering attention on social media | MSN news Powerful 'New Yorker' cover captures Asian American fears amidst hate crimes | Mashable The New Yorker’s latest cover, drawn by the artist R. Kikuo Johnson, captures the fear that permeates Asian-American communities across the United States amid a surge in racial violence targeting them. “It symbolizes the fear of existing in a place where we no longer feel welcome, waiting for a figurative train to take us away from this seemingly inescapable hole,” said Viet-Hai Huynh, a Vietnamese-American college student in Berkeley, California. The New Yorker cover has resonated with many Asian-Americans like Huynh, who have been forced to raise their guard against attacks that could come at them at any time: when they visit grocery stores, go to church, or otherwise live their lives in the world’s richest country. Johnson's adventure-filled folktale, The Shark King , transports young readers to the shores of his native Hawaii "Being hapa (mixed-race) was so common in Hawaii that I was rarely confronted with my racial identity there. As I prepared to leave Maui for college, in Rhode Island, I received an indication that things might be different on the mainland." —R. Kikuo Johnson An Honor Book for the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. Get The Shark King by R. Kikuo Johnson, A TOON Level 3 book. From the islands of Hawaii comes the electrifying tale of Nanaue, who has to balance his yearning for Dad’s guidance with his desire for Mom’s nurture. Emerging readers will be thrilled when they experience the transformative powers of this stirring literary work. Hardcover $12.95 Paperback $6.99 Click here to find out more " Fundamentally, I think the hope is to eradicate the idea that Asian bodies are inherently foreign." Count on TOON for relevant books for young readers. |
A poignant
New Yorker cover by TOON's
R. Kikuo Johnson sparks a conversation on social media | |
"The mother in the drawing is made up of all these women" | |
|
|
As a cartoonist, you frequently play with symbols and stereotypes. What were you trying to accomplish when portraying an Asian mother and child?
I began preparing for this project by revisiting news coverage of anti-Asian hate crimes committed during the pandemic. As I absorbed one account after another, they became increasingly difficult to read. So many mothers and grandmothers have been targeted. I imagined my own mom in that situation. I thought about my grandma and my aunt, who have been among my greatest sources of support. The mother in the drawing is made up of all these women.
—R. Kikuo Johnson in a New Yorker interview with Françoise Mouly.
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|
Multiple news sites
have picked up the story
| |
The New Yorker’s latest cover, drawn by the artist R. Kikuo Johnson, captures the fear that permeates Asian-American communities across the United States amid a surge in racial violence targeting them.
“It symbolizes the fear of existing in a place where we no longer feel welcome, waiting for a figurative train to take us away from this seemingly inescapable hole,” said Viet-Hai Huynh, a Vietnamese-American college student in Berkeley, California.
The New Yorker cover has resonated with many Asian-Americans like Huynh, who have been forced to raise their guard against attacks that could come at them at any time: when they visit grocery stores, go to church, or otherwise live their lives in the world’s richest country.
| |
Johnson's adventure-filled folktale, The Shark King, transports young readers to the shores of his native Hawaii | |
"Being hapa (mixed-race) was so common in Hawaii that I was rarely confronted with my racial identity there. As I prepared to leave Maui for college, in Rhode Island, I received an indication that things might be different on the mainland." —R. Kikuo Johnson | |
| | |
|
An Honor Book for the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature. | |
|
Get The Shark King by R. Kikuo Johnson, A TOON Level 3 book.
From the islands of Hawaii comes the electrifying tale of Nanaue, who has to balance his yearning for Dad’s guidance with his desire for Mom’s nurture.
Emerging readers will be thrilled when they experience the transformative powers of this stirring literary work.
Hardcover $12.95
Paperback $6.99
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"Fundamentally, I think the hope is to eradicate the idea that Asian bodies are inherently foreign." | |
Count on TOON for relevant books
for young readers. | |
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