WELCOME.
GOOD AFTERNOON.
I'M AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES
OF HEALTH.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US FOR
TODAY'S NATIONAL LIBRARY OF
MEDICINE NLM HISTORY TALK.
THIS ANNUAL SERIES OF PROGRAMS
IS OF NLM AND RELATED TO
HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS FOR
RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND PUBLIC
SERVICE IN BIOMEDICINE AND
SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES
AND THEY RECOGNIZE THE DIVERSITY
OF THE COLLECTIONS WHICH SPAN
COUNTRIES AND A RANGE OF FORMATS
AND ORIGINATE FROM NEARLY EVERY
PART OF THE GLOBE.
MOREOVER IT'S THE VOICES OF
PEOPLE OF COLOR, WOMEN AND
INDIVIDUALS OF A VARIETY OF
CULTURAL AND DISCIPLINARY
BACKGROUNDS WHO VALUE THESE
COLLECTIONS AND USE THEM TO
ADVANCE THEIR RESEARCH, LEARNING
AND FOR THOSE ON TWITTER USE THE
HASHTAG NLM HIS TALK AND FOR
THOSE WHO WISH TO SHARE
QUESTIONS USE THE MY FEEDBACK
BUTTON ON THE VIDEO TO SEND THE
QUESTIONS TO ME WHICH I'LL SHARE
WITH OUR SPEAKER.
TODAY I HAVE THE GREAT PLEASURE
AND PRIVILEGE OF INTRODUCE
DR. SOHA BAYOUMI IN THE HISTORY
OF THE HUMANITIES PROGRAM IN THE
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY AT
BALTIMORE TRAINED IN POLITICAL
HISTORY AND HISTORY OF IDEAS AND
WORKS AT THE INTERSECTION OF
HISTORY, POLITICAL THEORY AND
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MEDICINE
STUDIES.
GROWING UP IN CAIRO SURROUNDED
BY MEDICINE AND POLITICAL
ACTIVISM BECAME INTERESTED IN
UNDERSTANDING HOW MEDICAL
PROFESSIONALS' LEANS SHAPING
THEIR PRACTICE AND HOW TO IT
SHAPES IN TURN THEIR POLITICAL
AND SOCIAL CHOICES.
DR. BAYOUMI IS PARTICULARLY
INTERESTED IN GENDER STUDIES AND
POST-COLONIAL STUDIES.
AFTER RECEIVING HER B.A. FROM
CAIRO UNIVERSITY SHE COMPLETED
HER GRADUATE STUDIES IN FRANCE
IN PARIS AND CONDUCTED RESEARCH
IN ITALY AND GERMANY.
BEFORE TEACHING AT HOPKINS SHE
TAUGHT AT HARVARD'S DEPARTMENT
OF SCIENCE BETWEEN 2011 AND
2021.
WITH HER RESEARCH LOCATED AT THE
INTERSECTION OF MEDICINE AND
PUBLIC HEALTH AND QUESTIONS OF
HEALTH AND SOCIAL JUSTICE SWELLS
BIO MEDICAL ETHICS AND
MEDICINE-POLITICS NEXUS SHE HAS
PUBLISHED EXTENSIVELY IN HER
FIELD AND FINISHING A BOOK FOR
STANFORD PRESS CO-AUTHORED WITH
AN ANTHROPOLOGIST ON THE ROLES
PLAYED BY DOCTORS IN
REVOLUTIONARY AND
POST-REVOLUTIONARY EGYPT AND
WORKING ON ANOTHER BOOK PROJECT
ON THE SOCIAL ROLES OF DOCTORS
IN POST-COLONIAL EGYPT.
COMPLEMENTING HER TEACHING THE
MEDICINE OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND
HUMANITIES AND IS EDITOR OF THE
ISLAMIC AND MUSLIM STUDIES AND
WILL JOIN US TO DISCUSS THE
FIELD OF RAPID MEDICINE AS THE
MEDIUM OF COMICS AND DISCOURSE
OF HEALTH CARE AND DE CENTERING
WHITE NARRATIVES DURING THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
WELCOME.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TODAY.
WE'RE EXCITED TO HEAR YOUR TALK.
THANK YOU.
OVER TO YOU.
>> THANK YOU, JEFF.
I APPRECIATE THE INTRODUCTION
AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO
PARTICIPATE IN THE HISTORY
TALKS.
THIS IS A GREAT MOMENT FOR ME TO
SHARE THE TOPIC I'VE LATELY BEEN
INTERESTED IN.
I'VE BEEN INTERESTED IN THE
TOPIC OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE MANY
YEARS NOW BUT OVER THE LAST
COUPLE OF YEARS WITH THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC I'VE BEEN
PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN
THINKING ABOUT HOW THE FIELD IS
CHANGING.
DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH THE
FIELD IS CHANGING AND HOW IT IS
ACCOMMODATING OR NOT TO NEW
VOICES AND DIFFERENT VOICES.
SO IN YOUR INTRODUCTION YOU
GRACIOUSLY OFFERED THE BRIEF
DEFINITION OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
FOR THOSE WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR
WITH THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE, GRAPHIC MEDICINE WAS
DEFINED ACCORDING TO THE GRAPHIC
MEDICINE MANIFESTO PUBLISHED IN
2015 AS THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN
THE MEDIUM OF COMICS AND THE
DISCOURSE OF HEALTH CARE.
THIS IS FROM IS THE INTRODUCTION
TO THE GRAPHIC MEDICINE
MANIFESTO BY PENN STATE
UNIVERSITY PRESS IN 2015.
SO WHAT IS IT ABOUT COMICS THAT
IS INTERESTING IN GENERAL BUT
PARTICULARLY INTERESTING TO
MEDICINE?
WHY IS IT THAT A LOT OF ARTISTS
AND SCHOLARS AND PRACTITIONERS
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS HAVE BEEN
INTERESTED IN THE POTENTIAL OF
COMICS AND THE DIFFERENT ROLES
PLAYED BY COMICS IN A CLIN CAG
SETTING BUT ALSO IN GENERAL AND
UNDERSTANDING THE CULTURES OF
MEDICINE, IF YOU WILL.
ONE ELEMENT THAT'S BEEN
HIGHLIGHTED A LOT IS THE NOTION
OF ABSTRACTION.
HOW COMICS AS A VISUAL FORMAT AS
A VISUAL ART COMPARED TO OTHER
VISUAL ARTS RELIES A LOT ON
ABSTRACTION.
COMPARED FOR EXAMPLE TO
PHOTOGRAPHY AND EVEN TO
PAINTING.
THE AUTHOR OF "MOM'S CANCER" BY
NOW ONE OF THE ESSENTIAL BOOKS
PART OF THE CLASSICS IF YOU WILL
OF THE CANNON OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE PUBLISHED IN 2006 AND
WINNER OF THE ISNER AWARD TALKED
A LOT ABOUT ABSTRACTION AND ONE
ASPECT THAT HE HIGHLIGHTED TO
SORT OF SHOWCASE THE MEANINGS
AND THE ROLES PLAYED BY
ABSTRACTION IN COMICS IS BY
THINKING ABOUT CHARLIE BROWN BY
CHARLES SCHULTZ.
THE WAYS IN WHICH CHARLIE
BROWN'S FACE, CHARLIE BROWN'S
HEAD IS REPRESENTED IN VARIOUS
SIMPLISTIC WAYS USING JUST A FEW
LINES.
A CIRCLE AND TWO HALF CIRCLES
FOR THE EARS AND JUST A FEW
LINES SOME WIGGLY LINES FOR A
FROWN, FOR INSTANCE.
BUT HOW CHARLIE BROWN HAS BEEN
ABLE TO ATTRACT US IN MANY WAYS
AND EVEN PUSH US TO EMPATHIZE
WITH HIM TO BREAK OUR HEARTS
SOMETIMES OR TO MAKE US HAPPY OR
IT MAKE US LAUGH.
JUST BECAUSE OF THE AC
DISTRACTION INVOLVED THERE.
THE FACT THAT A LOT OF US CAN
IDENTIFY WITH THE ABSTRACT
FIGURE IS A POINT A LOT OF
COMICS HAVE TALKED A LOT ABOUT.
THE OTHER ELEMENT IS THE CLICHE
OFTEN USED THE IDEA THAT A
PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND
WORDS AND COMICS ARE NOT JUST
PICTURES.
THEY'RE AN ART FORM THAT IS
BASED ON THE COMBINATION OF TEXT
AND IMAGE.
THINK FOR EXAMPLE I'M USING THIS
PAGE FROM LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW
IN 2015 A GRAPHIC MEMOIR IN
WHICH SHE WRITES ABOUT HER
EXPERIENCE WITH EATING DISORDERS
AND OTHER MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES
AND ON ONE PAGE YOU CAN SEE HER
DEPICTING HER ADULT SELF, HER
CURRENT SELF, IF YOU WILL, AND
HER YOUNGER SELF.
AND THINKING WHO SHE IS IN
RELATION TO HER YOUNGER SELF.
THIS IS THAT WOULD TAKE PAGES
AND PAGES OF TEXT ALONE TO
DESCRIBE IN ORDER TO RELAY THE
MESSAGE TO THE READER BUT USING
THE COMBINATION OF TEXT AND
IMAGES YOU CAN BE VERY CONCISE
AND VERY EFFECTIVE IN RELYING
THE MESSAGES AND CONVEYING THEM
TO THE READER AND VIEWER.
AS IT WAS WROTE, COMICS MAY
CONVEY A STORY IN A MORE
FLEXIBLE WAY AND DUE TO THEIR
VISUAL NATURE ARE MORE
EXPRESSIVE AND ENGAGE THE READER
ON A DEEPER WAY THAN THE WRITTEN
WORD ALONE.
OTHER ELEMENT A LOT OF OBSERVERS
AND COLORS AND EVEN ARTISTS HAVE
INVOKED WHEN IT COMES TO TALKING
ABOUT COMICS AND THE IMPORTANCE
OF COMICS IN THINKING ABOUT
MEDICINE THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE IS THE IDEA OF CONTROL
ONE'S NARRATIVE.
WHEN SOMEONE IS SICK OR DEALING
WITH A SIGNIFICANT HEALTH
CONDITION THERE'S A LOT OF
VULNERABILITY OFTEN EXPERIENCED
BY THE PERSON IN QUESTION.
SOMETIMES PEOPLE DESCRIBE IT AS
A LOSS OF CONTROL OR EVEN IN
SOME CASES A LOSS OF
INDEPENDENCE.
THE IDEA OF REGAINING THE
ABILITY TO CONTROL ONE'S
NARRATIVE AND ONE'S STORY SEEMS
TO BE EMPOWERING TO MANY PEOPLE
WHO DEAL WITH HEALTH ISSUES OR
SERIOUS ILLNESSES.
THESE ARE THEMES THAT HAVE
INFUSED THE FIELD OF NARRATIVE
MEDICINE SINCE ITS INCEPTION.
IN HER 2018 MEMOIR RACHEL
LINDSEY DEPICTS THE IMPULSE TO
CONTROL ONE'S NARRATIVE AND IN
THE GRAPHIC MEMOIR SHE TALKS
ABOUT HER EXPERIENCE WITH
BIPOLAR DISORDER AND THE
HOSPITALIZATION WHICH WAS NOT
VOLUNTARY IN MANY WAYS AND LIKE
THE DIFFERENT FEELINGS SHE WAS
HAVING AS A RESULT.
PARTICULARLY THE LOSS OF CONTROL
AND INDEPENDENCE.
ONE THING SHE DECIDED TO DO AS
SHE TALKED HOW SHE CAME TO
CREATE THE BOOK SHE TALKED ABOUT
ACCESSING HER HOSPITAL NOTES.
THE NOTES THAT WERE TAKEN BY HER
PSYCHIATRIST AND BY HER
TREATMENT TEAM ABOUT HER AS SHE
WAS EXPERIENCING A MANIC EPISODE
DURING HER HOSPITALIZATION AND
TO ILLUSTRATE THE NOTES USING
HER OWN WAY OF THINK AND
REMEMBERING THAT EXPERIENCE
WHICH WAS DIFFICULT AND
TRAUMATIC FOR HER.
IN TALKING ABOUT THIS AND HER
CHOICES THE ARTISTIC CHOICES SHE
MADE SHE TALKED ABOUT WANTING TO
TAKE CONTROL OF THE NARRATIVE AT
THE MOMENT WHERE SHE FELT
VULNERABLE AND WAS NOT IN THE
DRIVER'S SEAT.
IT TIES INTO THE IDEA OF THE
CATHARTIC FUNCTIONS OF COMICS.
A LOT OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT
COMICS AS A WAY OF PROCESSING
DIFFICULT EXPERIENCES AND TRYING
TO MAKE SENSE OF ILLNESSES THAT
CAN UP END THE WORLD AS WE KNOW
IT FOR THE PERSON INVOLVED AND
FOR THEIR LOVED ONES.
THINK FOR EXAMPLE OF FUN HOME
THOUGH IT WAS PUBLISHED IN 2006
AND TURNED INTO A MUSICAL TALKS
ABOUT MANY ISSUES APART FROM
ILLNESSES BUT HER DISCUSSION OF
MENTAL ILLNESS IN HER FAMILY
WHETHER HER STRUGGLE WITH OCD
GROWING UP OR HER FATHER'S
DEPRESSION AND ULTIMATE DEATH BY
SUICIDE FUN HOME HAS BEEN
CONSIDERED A CLASSIC IN THE
FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE AND
WAY FOR HER TO MAKE SENSE OF
THAT VERY TROUBLED PAST AS A
CHILD GROWING UP IN THE FUNERAL
HOME/FUN HOME.
IN ADDITION TO THE CATHARTIC
THERE'S DIDACTIC FUNCTIONS.
THEY'VE BEEN HELPFUL TO
COMMUNICATE FOR HEALTH
COMMUNICATION FOR MEDICAL
COMMUNICATION AND FOR FACIL
FACILITATING IN THE FORM OF
PAMPHLETS FOR INSTANCE, TO
EXPLAIN ISSUES ABOUT DISEASES OR
RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT CERTAIN
RISK FACTORS, ETCETERA.
THIS FROM A DIABETES AFTER
YOU'RE YOUR DECK WHERE SHE WORKS
AMONG OTHER THINGS AS MEDICAL
ILLUSTRATOR AND CARTOONIST AND
HAS WORKED WITH MASS GENERAL
HOSPITAL TO PRODUCE A NUMBER OF
COMICS FOR A WIDER AUDIENCE AND
FOR PATIENTS ABOUT CERTAIN
ISSUES INCLUDING CERTAIN
ILLNESSES LIKE DIABETES FOR
EXAMPLE, CHRONIC CONDITIONS AND
THIS HAS BEEN USED AS AN EXAMPLE
A WAY IN WHICH A COMIC USING
SOMETIMES LEAVE SI OR HUMOR CAN
BE AN EFFECTIVE WAY OF TEACHING
PEOPLE ABOUT MEDICAL ISSUES AND
HEALTH ISSUES.
A LOT OF WHAT WE SEE IN THE
GRAPHIC MEDICINE FIELD CAN BE AS
VISUAL OR GRAPHIC TOPOGRAPHY.
THAT WAS COINED BY MICHAEL GREEN
AND KIMBERLY MYERS TO REFER TO A
SUBGENRE THAT ADDRESSES
PATIENT'S EXPERIENCES OF
ILLNESS.
ILLNESS NARRATIVES IN GRAPHIC OR
VISUAL FORMAT.
AND IN THE GRAPHIC MEDICINE
MANIFESTO THEY DESCRIBE ARTISTS
CREATE THEIR OWN ICONOGRAPHY OF
ILLNESS AND IN DOING SO THEY
COMBINE SUBJECTIVE FEELINGS AND
PERCEPTIONS WITH THE OBJECTIVE
VISUAL REPRESENTATION.
AS WE SAW IN KATIE GREENE FOR
EXAMPLE IN THE LIGHTER THAN MY
SHADOW WE SEE THE IDEA OF
DEPICTING THE OBJECTIVE WORLD
WHILE ON THE SAME PAGE DEPICTING
INNER PERCEPTIONS AND INNER
WORLDS OF THE PATIENT OR THE
PERSON IN QUESTION.
THIS WAS THE IDEA OF CREATING
VISUAL TOPOGRAPHIES AND IT'S
EXPLAINED AS SOMETHING THAT
ALLOWS PATIENTS THAT ALLOWS
PEOPLE WHO ARE LIVING WITH
ILLNESSES TO TAKE CONTROL OF
THEIR NARRATIVE AGAIN.
THEY WRITE THIS WAS
TRADITIONALLY THE DOMAIN OF THE
DOCTOR OR MEDICAL ARTIST WHO
WIELDED POWER BY CONTROLLING AND
STANDARDIZING THE WAY DISEASES
WERE VISUALIZED.
GRAPHIC MEDICINE SEEKS TO
DESTRUCT THE POWER IMBALANCE AND
BELIEVE THOSE BEST POSITIONED TO
REPRESENT ILLNESS AND CARE AND
CAREGIVING ARE THOSE LIVING WITH
IT.
OF COURSE HERE THEY'RE USE THE
TERM WHICH IS RALLYING CRY FOR A
LONG TIME FOR THE DISABILITY
RIGHTS MOVEMENT IN THE 1990s
AUTHOR AND DISABILITY ACTIVIST
WROTE NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT
US AND BECAME A RALLYING CRY FOR
MANY IN THE DISABLED COMMUNITY
MAKING SURE THE INPUT OF
DISABLED PEOPLE IS AT THE CENTER
OF LAWS AND POLICIES AND
GUIDELINES AND ACCOMMODATIONS
THAT WOULD WORK BEST FOR THEM
BUT HAS ALSO BEEN A SLOGAN THAT
MOTIVATED MANY CONTROLLING THEM
ABOUT THEIR LIVES, DISABILITIES
OR CHRONIC CONDITIONS.
IN ADDITION TO THE VISUAL TOP AG
GRAPHIES AND THE NARRATIVES OF
ILLNESS OF THOSE PEOPLE LIVING
WITH THE ILLNESSES OR LOVED ONES
IN THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE
WE FIND NARRATIVES WRITTEN BY
THE PROVIDERS THEMSELVES.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE ANNALS OF
INTERNAL MEDICINE SINCE 2013
BASICALLY THEY HAVE BEEN
PUBLISHING A LOT OF COMICS BY
PHYSICIANS AND OTHER HEALTH CARE
PROVIDERS.
MIKE NATTER IS A PHYSICIAN WHO
IS ALSO AN ARTIST AND PUBLISHED
WITH THE ANNALS OF INTERNAL
MEDICINE ABOUT BEING A RESIDENT
AND THE DIFFICULTIES AND CASES
HE ENCOUNTERS AND THE BURNOUT
THAT A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER OR
DOCTOR EXPERIENCES, OBVIOUSLY.
THIS HAS ALL BEEN EXACERBATED
OVER THE COURSE OF THE COVID-19
PANDEMIC.
AND THERE'S ANOTHER POSITION WHO
WRITES FOR THE ANNALS AND
CREATES COMICS FOR THE ANNALS OF
INTERNAL MEDICINE UNDER THE
RUBRIC OF DR. MOM WRITING ABOUT
BEING A MOTHER AND PHYSICIAN AND
THE DEMANDS ON HER TIME, THE
COMPETING DEMANDS ON HER TIME
AND HOW SHE USES SORT OF LIKE
THE DIFFERENT STRUGGLES AND THE
DIFFERENT JOYS OF BEING BOTH A
PHYSICIAN AND PARENT.
AND WILLIAM HAS FAMOUSLY WRITTEN
THE BAD DOCTOR AND THE LADY
DOCTOR.
TWO BOOKS ABOUT PHYSICIANS AND
THEIR PRACTICE IN NORTHERN WALES
IN WHICH THEY'RE PARTICULARLY IN
THE BAD DOCTOR WE SEE HIM
TALKING ABOUT THE DOCTOR'S
STRUGGLE WITH OCD.
THE DOCTORS MENTAL STRUGGLE IN
MANY WAYS AS WELL.
M.K. SURWICK IS A NURSE AND
INSTRUCTOR OF MEDICAL HUMANITIES
AND COMICS WHO WROTE THE STORY
OF TAKING -- WROTE THE BOOK
TAKING TURNS, STORIES FROM HIV
CARE UNIT 371 BASED ON HER
EXPERIENCE WORKING IN THE
CHICAGO MASONIC HOSPITAL
DEDICATED HIV/AIDS PATIENTS IN
THE 1990s AT THE HEIGHT OF THE
AIDS EPIDEMIC AND DURING A
CRUCIAL MOMENT IN THE AIDS
EPIDEMIC WHEN THERE WAS STILL A
LOT OF DEATHS AND THE ANNALS OF
INTERNAL MEDICINE I THINK THIS
WAS THE FIRST COMIC WRITTEN BY
MICHAEL GREENE AND ILLUSTRATED
ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE OF THE
YOUNG INTERN OR BASICALLY THE
DOCTOR REMEMBERING 20 YEARS AGO
WHEN THEY WERE A YOUNG INTERN
AND MAKING A MEDICAL MISTAKE
THAT POTENTIALLY COST SOMEONE
THEIR LIFE AND LIVING WITH THAT.
UNDER THE TITLE MISFIT THE IDEA
OF GUILT, PHYSICIANS GUILT IN
LIVING WITH THAT GUILT.
THE FACT THERE'S VISUAL
TOPOGRAPHIES AND NARRATIVES IN
COMIC FORMAT LED MANY TO THINK
OF THE COMIC'S POTENTIAL TO
BUILD EMPATHY.
FOR US, FOR PATIENTS, FOR
EXAMPLE, READING THE STORIES
WRITTEN BY DOCTORS AND OTHER
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AND FOR
PROVIDERS TO UNDERSTAND THE
SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCES OF
ILLNESS FOR THE PATIENT THROUGH
READING THEIR NARRATIVES AND
READING THEIR COMICS.
IT'S A WAY TO BUILD EMPATHY.
THERE'S ALSO ATTEMPTS TO ADDRESS
THIS MORE DIRECTLY, FOR EXAMPLE,
IN PATRICIA ANDERSON'S COMIC
DIFFICULTY DOCTORS, DIFFICULT
PATIENTS PUBLISHED IN THE
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF RADIOLOGY WE
SEE THE COMIC GOES THIS IS AN
EXCERPT FROM THE COMIC.
WE SEE THE PANELS GOING SIDE BY
SIDE.
ONE SHOWING THE DOCTOR'S SIDE
WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THE DOCTOR
FROM THE DOCTOR'S PERSPECTIVE
AND THE OTHER IS SHOWING THE
PATIENT'S PERSPECTIVE AND THE
LEAD UP TO THE LIVER BIOPSY AND
THE AFTERMATH TO SEE WHAT EACH
PERSON IS THINKING ABOUT AND
WHAT THEY'RE CONCERNED WITH AS A
WAY OF BUILDING EMPATHY AND
BRIDGES.
AND THERE'S A COMIC, WHAT THE
HELL?
WHY'S MY DOCTOR SO LATE IN WHICH
THERE'S THE IDEA OF THE PATIENT
THINKING I'M NOT GETTING WHAT A
NEED AND EXPLAINING FROM THE
DOCTOR'S PERSPECTIVE WHY THEY
SOMETIMES NEED TO SPEND MORE
TIME FROM A PATIENT AND DEMANDS
ON THEIR TIME AND HOW THEY'RE
OVERWORKED IN MANY WAYS AND SOME
HOSPITALS AND PLACES WHERE
THEY'RE WORKING ARE UNDER
STAFFED, ETCETERA.
FROM HERE I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT
THE WAYS IN WHICH GRAPHIC
MEDICINE OVER THE PAST 13 YEARS
OR SO SINCE THE TERM WAS COINED
AND SINCE THE FIRST GRAPHIC
MEDICINE CONFERENCE HELD IN 2010
THE FIELD HAS GAINED A LOT OF
LITH -- LEGITIMACY AND THERE'S A
WEB EXCLUSIVE SECTION ALWAYS
MADE FREE OR OPEN ACCESS FOR ALL
CALLED ANNALS GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
THE FACT THAT ANNALS OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE PUBLISHED BY THE
COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS WAS THE
MOST WIDELY CITED MEDICAL
JOURNALS IN THE FIELD SHOWS THE
GROWTH OF THE FIELD AND IMPACT
ON PHYSICIANS AND ON MEDICAL
AUTHORITIES IN GENERAL WHO ARE
SEEING A VALUE IN THIS FORMAT
AND IN THIS GENRE.
BUT ALSO THE FACT THE NLM
RECOGNIZED THIS FIELD AS AN
IMPORTANT FIELD TO DOCUMENT AND
TO BUILD A COLLECTION TO SUPPORT
THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
IN 2018 THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF
MEDICINE LAUNCHED A COLLECTION
OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE AND INCLUDED
AN ONSITE EXHIBIT, A TRAVELLING
EXHIBIT AND ONLINE EXHIBIT AND
CURRICULA FOR HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS AND FOR COLLEGE
STUDENTS THE EXHIBIT DEVELOPED Q
RATED BY THE AUTHOR OF ROCK
STEADY AND MARBLES WHICH ARE
CLASSICS IN THE GRAPHIC MEDICINE
CANNON WAS CALLED ILL CONCEIVED
AND WELL DRAWN AND CONTINUES TO
OFFER A LOT OF RESOURCES TO
PEOPLE'S COLORS AND
PRACTITIONERS AND STUDENTS OF
THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
TO PUT IT CRUDELY, ONE THING YOU
MIGHT HAVE NOTICED IS A LOT OF
THE NARRATIVES I TALKED ABOUT SO
FAR IT'S NOT A COMPLETE LIST
ABOUT GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
THERE'S A LOT MORE.
IT'S BEEN PREDOMINANTLY WHITE
AND MIDDLE CLASS.
I'M PUTTING IT CRUDELY HERE.
WHY IS GRAPHIC MEDICINE SO
WHITE?
THERE'S LOTS OF REASONS WE THINK
THIS IS THE CASE.
THERE'S THE FACT THAT THERE'S A
LOT OF TIME AND EFFORT NEEDED TO
PRODUCE A GRAPHIC NARRATIVE.
PEOPLE THINK GRAPHIC NARRATIVES,
COMIC BOOKS ARE EASY TO READ.
YOU CAN READ A COMIC BOOK IN A
COUPLE HOURS OR TWO TO THREE
HOURS AND BE DONE WITH IT.
I DON'T.
I DON'T READ THEM THAT QUICKLY.
NOVELS AND COMIC BOOKS ARE A
FORMAT THAT INVITE US TO DELVE
DEEPER AND PAUSE AND SET THE
PACE FOR OUR READING
EXPERIENCING WHAT'S INVOLVED AND
THERE'S A LOT TO UNPACK WHEN
READING GRAPHIC NARRATIVES.
PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULDN'T TAKE
THAT MUCH.
IT ACTUALLY TAKES MANY HOURS TO
PRODUCE EVEN ONE PAGE WITH FOUR
OR SIX PANELS YOU CAN CONSUME IN
A MINUTE.
THIS IS A HUGE OBSTACLE FOR
PEOPLE WHO MAY BE DEALING WITH
ILLNESSES WHO MAY ALREADY BE
DISADVANTAGED OR DEALING WITH A
SIGNIFICANT HEALTH CONDITION.
FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT
A LOT OF THE NOVELS ON BREAST
CANCER AND ONLY CHOOSING FOUR TO
ILLUSTRATE.
THEY WERE ALL PRODUCED BY WHITE
WOMEN AND THOUGH THEY'RE MORE
LIKELY TO DEVELOP BREAST CANCER
THAN BLACK, HISPANIC AND ASIAN
WOMEN BLACK WOMEN GET MORE
ADVANCED STAGE AND MORE
AGGRESSIVE BREAST CANCER AND
MORE LIKELY TO DIE SO WHY IS IT
WE MOSTLY SEE WHITE MIDDLE-CLASS
NARRATIVES?
I THINK IT'S BECAUSE IT'S HARD
FOR ME TO THINK THAT IT WOULD BE
AS EASY FOR A BLACK SINGLE
MOTHER WHOSE WORKING SEVERAL
JOBS IN ORDER TO MAKE ENDS MEET
TO FIND THE TIME TO REFLECT AND
WRITE AND PROCESS AND WRITE
ABOUT HER EXPERIENCE WITH BREAST
CANCER AND THEN FIND A PUBLISHER
WILLING TO DO THAT.
76% OF THE PUBLISHERS IN THE
COUNTRY ARE WHITE AND THERE'S I
TENDENCY TO PRIVILEGE WHITE
MIDDLE CLASS NARRATIVES AND
STORIES AS A RESULT.
ADDITIONALLY, THERE'S THE STIGMA
OF SHARING.
IN HIS 1963 CLASSIC STIGMA NOTES
ON THE MANAGED OF SPOILED
IDENTITY IT'S EXPLAINED HOW
STIGMA FUNCTIONS AS A MEANS OF
FORMAL SOCIAL CONTROL END QUOTE.
STIGMA IS SOCIALLY PRODUCED AND
FOR BLACK INDIGENOUS AND OTHER
PEOPLE OF COLOR, THE RACIAL
STIGMA COMBINED WITH THE STIGMA
OF ILLNESS TO PRODUCE A
CONDITION IN WHICH BIPOC
INDIVIDUALS ARE COMPELLED TO
KEEP THEIR WOES PRIVATE OR TO
ONLY SHARE THEM WITH DIFFERENT
KIN WHEN A LOT OF THE AILMENTS
AFFLICTING POPULATIONS OF COLOR
ARE CONSTANTLY STIGMATIZED AS
LIFESTYLE DISEASES ARRIVING FROM
MISGUIDED NOTIONS THESE ARE THE
RESULT OF LIFE CHOICES, DIET,
EXERCISE, SMOKING, ETCETERA.
FEW PEOPLE OF COLOR WOULD FIND
SPACES TO SHARE THIS WITHOUT
JUDGMENT AND THERE'S WHO ENGAGES
IN CONFESSIONAL NARRATIVES.
AND WESTERN SOCIETIES IN THE
HISTORY OF SEXUALITY, WESTERN
SOCIETIES ESTABLISH CONFESSION
AS THE RITUAL OF TRUTH.
WE'VE BEEN A SINGULARLY
CONFESSING SOCIETY AND WESTERN
MAN IS A CONFESSIONAL ANIMAL AND
THERE'S CONFLATION BETWEEN
WESTERN AND WHITE IN THE CONTEXT
AND WAS NOT KNOWN TO TAKE RACE
INTO ACCOUNT IN MEANINGFUL WAYS.
SO WHERE CONFESSION IS NO LONGER
TIED TO THE CHRISTIAN ROOTS OF
GUILT BUT TO NEW FORMS OF
SUBJECTIVITY AND COMING OUT.
THE IDEA OF COMING OUT WHETHER
IT'S IN THE QUEER CONTEXT OR
COMING OUT IN THE DISABILITY
CONTEXT.
THEY BECOME SECULAR CONFESSIONAL
PRACTICES AND TECHNIQUES THAT
MARK MODERN SUBJECTIVITY WHICH
ARE VALUED FOR THEIR ABILITY TO
PRODUCE TRUTH.
AND DESCRIBE HOW CONFESSION
PERMEATES ALL FIELD OF SOCIAL
LIFE.
JUSTICE, MEDICINE, EDUCATION,
FAMILY AND LOVE RELATIONS.
THE MOST ORDINARY AFFAIRS OF
EVERYDAY LIFE.
CONFESSIONAL WRITING HE
DESCRIBES HOW TECHNIQUES OF THE
CARE OF THE SELF SURPASS THE
ORAL RITUALS OF CONFESSIONS TO
THE WRITTEN AS THE SELF BECAME
SOMETHING TO WRITE ABOUT A THEME
FOR OBJECT/SUBJECT FOR WRITING
ACTIVITY.
AND WRITES THE PRIVATE DIARIES
AND NARRATIVES OF THE SELF AND
SO ON CANNOT BE UNDERSTOOD
UNLESS IT'S PUT IN THE GENERAL
FRAMEWORK OF THE PRACTICES OF
THE SELF.
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN WRITING ABOUT
THEMSELVES FOR 2,000 YEARS BUT
NOT IN THE SAME WAY.
IN THE ART OF CONFESSION FROM
ROBERT LOWELL AND IN A CHAPTER
CALLED THE UNBEARABLE WHITENESS
OF THE CONFESSIONAL, HE WRITES
HOW CONFESSION IS BOTH
PRIVILEGED IN ITS PUREST FORM,
STRAIGHT WHITE CIS MALE
PROTESTANT PRIVILEGE.
SAID WHO CAN WORK WITH
CONFIDENCE IN A CONFESSIONAL
MODE WHO ONCE DONE SO WILL BE
RECEIVED BY THE PUBLIC AS
CONFESSIONAL.
MORE THAN THAT, WHO WILL BE
CELEBRATED FOR CON FEFG?
-- CONFESSING?
AND HE RELIES ON MICHAEL NATO
GARCIA'S IN THE AUTOBIO GRAPHY
AND THE EXPECTATIONS IMPOSED ON
BLACK SUBJECTS ARE ALSO SO MUCH
APART OF PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
THEY BECOME INTEGRAL TO ONE'S
STORY.
THIS IS BETTER WELL EXEMPLIFIED
IN JAMES BALDWIN'S WORK.
MANY HIGHLIGHTS HIM AS AN
EXAMPLE OF THE BLACK LITERARY
TRADITION AND IT WAS DESCRIBED
HOW BLACK WRITING POSITS THE
INDIVIDUAL I OF THE BLACK AUTHOR
AND THE COLLECTIVE "I" OF THE
RACE AND THE "I" WHICH IS
SINGULAR ONLY BY GRAMMAR, IS THE
"I" OF WITNESS AND TESTIMONY.
HE WRITES I'M AN WITNESS TO
WHENCE I CAME, WHERE I CAME,
WITNESS TO WHAT I'VE SEEN AND
THE POSSIBILITIES THAT I THINK I
SEE.
THIS IS A DIFFERENT "I" FROM THE
SINGULAR "I" AND SAID I PICK THE
COTTON AND I CARRY TO MARKET AND
I BUILT THE RAILROADS UNDER
SOMEONE ELSE'S WHIP FOR NOTHING.
IT GOES TO EXPLAIN WHY IN MY
VIEW TAKEN THE CONFESSIONAL
ASPECT OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE FOR
GRANTED IS PROBLEMATIC AND
SOMETHING WE NEED TO QUESTION
AND NEED TO INVESTIGATE WHEN WE
THINK OF WHY CONFESSIONAL
NARRATIVES ARE SO WHITE.
WHY GRAPHIC MEDICINE AS A FIELD
IN GENERAL IS SO WHITE AND SO
MIDDLE CLASS.
ENTER THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
IT HAS SPURRED AN EXPLOSION OF
COMICS IN PRINT AND IN THE WEB.
COMICS THAT PORTRAY ASPECTS OF
WHAT MANY CALL IN THE ARTICLE
COVIDITY A COIN TERMED TO DENOTE
INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE
PHILOSOPHICAL, MATERIAL AND WIDE
RANGING RESPONSES TO THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
WE SEE COVID COME DOING ALL
SORTS OF THINGS AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL
MOMENTS OF CARING SOMEONE FOR
COVID AND THE DIFFERENT SYMPTOMS
ONE EXPERIENCES.
WE FIND COMICS SHOWING PEOPLE'S
RESISTANCE AND RESILIENCE AND
THE WAYS IN WHICH THEY ARE
COPING COLLECTIVELY THIS IS
DEPICTING WHAT PEOPLE WERE DOING
IN WUHAN DURING LOCKDOWN OR
SHOWING WHAT'S HAPPENING INSIDE
SPACES OFTEN UNSEEN DURING THE
PANDEMIC LIKE E.R.s OR I.C.Us
AND DEPICTING THE CLINICAL
SPACES AND THE TOLL COVID HAS
TAKEN ON HEALTH CARE WORKERS AND
ON PATIENTS AND FAMILIES.
THESE ARE ALL EXAMPLES OF THAT
OR THE IDEA OF FAMILIES AWAY
FROM LOVED ONES AS THEY RECEIVED
TREATMENT AND THE DECISION
AROUND TREATMENT.
TALK ABOUT TOPICS THAT HAVE
TAKEN A BACK SEAT DURING THE
HEIGHT AND THE BEGINNING OF THE
PANDEMIC LIKE MENTAL HEALTH, FOR
EXAMPLE AND SOMETHING FOR PEOPLE
WITH ANXIETY FOR INSTANCE OR OB
RECEIVING COMPULSIVE DISORDER,
SOMETHING.
SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS GOING TO
THE STORE AND WHAT THAT NIGHT
ENTAIL OR INDUCING HUMOR TO
INTRODUCE LEVITY TO OTHERWISE
AND DISTURBING SITUATIONS
WHETHER IT'S ISOLATION OR HAVING
COVID OR BEING AWAY FROM LOVED
ONES.
THESE COMICS USE HUMOR AND
LEVITY.
EDUCATIONAL COMICS HAVE PLAYED
AN IMPORTANT ROLE AND WE'VE SEEN
A RISE IN THOSE DURING THE
PANDEMIC WHETHER EXPLAINING HOW
THE VARIOUS MUTATES OR DEBUNKING
MYTHS AROUND THE SAFETY OF
VACCINATIONS DURING PREGNANCY OR
THINGS LIKE HOW TO USE A
PLAYGROUND IN A PANDEMIC.
THINGS AS SIMPLE AS THAT OR WHAT
DOES IT MEAN TO WATCH YOUR HANDS
FOR 20 SECONDS.
WHAT'S THAT LOOK LIKE?
OR THINKING ABOUT PREVIOUS
PANDEMICS AND HOW THEY COMPARE.
PUTTING STATISTICS AND
HISTORICAL IDEAS IN CONTEXT IN
RELATION TO THE PANDEMIC IN A
GRAPHIC OR VISUAL FORMAT AND
THERE'S COMICS FOR CHILDREN AND
N.P.R. PUBLISHED SEVERAL
TARGETING CHILDREN AND THIS
EXPLAINED THE COVID-19 OR THE
SARS COV2 VIRUS AND WHAT IT IS.
YOU MUST HAVE HEARD OF THAT AT
THE BEGINNING OF THE PANDEMIC.
WHAT IS THIS?
OR THINGS LIKE WHAT SHOULD WE
DO?
HOW DO YOU PROCESS YOUR FEELINGS
AROUND THIS?
YOU MUST BE FEELING WORRIED,
SCARES, FRUSTRATED.
HOW TO PROCESS THAT.
THE GRAPHIC MEDICINE WEBSITE
DOCUMENTED A LOT OF THESE
COVID-19 COMICS.
A NEW PHENOMENON I'M ARGUING
HERE IS COVID-19 COMICS PRESENT
A MUCH MORE SIGNIFICANT
DIVERSITY OF CREATORS AND
NARRATIVES THAT TOUCH ON THE
LIVES AND EXPERIENCES OF BIPOC
INDIVIDUALS AND COMMUNITIES AND
OTHER MARGINALIZED IDENTITIES.
TAKE FOR INSTANCE THIS COMIC
THAT WAS PRODUCED, SERIALIZED
ONLINE AND COLLECTED IN A
COLLECTION CALLED CORONA COMICS
THE SERIES IS CALLED TRIBAL
CORONA COMICS WHERE AN ARTIST
AND MEMBER OF THE WINNEBAGO
TRIBE OF NEBRASKA IN
COLLABORATION WITH BOB HALL A
FAMOUS ARTIST AND WRITER WHO
WORKED FOR MARVEL AMONG OTHER
BIG COMIC PUBLISHERS WRITES THE
COMIC THAT WRITES QUESTIONS
RELATED TO PANDEMIC AND THE
SETTLER COLONIAL AND TRIBAL
MEDICINE THROUGH THE
FIGURE/GHOST OF PHYSICIAN AND
FORMER REFORMER, SUSAN LEFLESH
LECUT AS ONE OF THE FIRST
INDIGENOUS WOMEN TO EARN A
MEDICAL DEGREE OR THIS COMIC
THAT WAS PUBLISHED BY THE NIB BY
AN ENROLLED MEMBER OF THE TRIBE
OF OKLAHOMA AND A NAVAJO WRITER
FOR INDIAN COUNTRY TODAY ABOUT
THE IMPACT OF THE COVID PANDEMIC
ON THE NAVAJO NATION.
AND A COMIC ON HOW TO HAVE A
POW-WOW AND WHAT EMERGES FROM
OPPRESSION AND THE MEANINGS OF
EPIDEMIC AND THE CHANGES
VALENCES OF HAVING A POW-WOW
DURING A PANDEMIC.
OR THIS COMIC PUBLISHED BY THE
LIBBY A FILIPINO AMERICAN QUEER
COMIC ARTIST WHO LIVES IN QUEENS
AND WROTE THE COMIC ABOUT THE
HOSPITAL WHICH SERVES MOSTLY
BIPOC MIGRANT AND INCARCERATED
FOLKS DURING THE PANDEMIC AND
HOW THE LACK OF RESOURCES AND
UNDER FUNDING CONTRIBUTED TO
DISMAL OUTCOMES THERE.
AND THE PHRASE THAT WAS HEAVED
ON THE NEW YORK GOVERNOR, ANDREW
CUOMO ON THE PANDEMIC AND THE
COMICS SHED LIGHT ON THE WAYS
LIKE POLICIES LIKE HIS LEFT THE
CITY AND THE MOST IMPOVERISHED
AND MARGINALIZED PARTS OF THE
CITY UNPREPARED AND THERE'S
COMICS BLACK CREATORS AND
CREATORS OF COLOR AND THE SUMMER
OF 2020 AND THE SYSTEMIC RACISM
AND THE TWIN PANDEMIC OF COVID
AND WHITE SUPREMACY AND HOW IN
THE COMIC FOR EXAMPLE WHICH
TALKS ABOUT ONE OF THE
ORGANIZERS OF BLACK LIVES
MATTERS SAID RACISM HAS KILLED
MORE PEOPLE THAN COVID-19.
THE WORK OF AN ACTIVIST IS THAT
OF AN ESSENTIAL WORKER AND NOT A
QUESTION TO IF WE'RE GO OUT AND
PROTEST AND ORGANIZE, IT WAS
HOW.
AND THE STORY OF A BROTHER WHO
WAS KILLED BY BALTIMORE POLICE
AND HER ORGANIZING WORK DESPITE
HAVING ALL SORTS OF CONCERNS
ABOUT HER HEALTH AND THE HEALTH
OF HER FAMILY WHO HAVE
UNDERLYING HEALTH CONDITIONS AND
PARTICULARLY VULNERABLE TO GO
OUT AND PROTEST AND ORGANIZE
DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
AND ESSENTIAL WORKERS MOST OF
WHOM WHO ARE PEOPLE OF COLOR
DYING AT TWO AND A HALF TIMES
THE RATE OF WHITE AMERICANS.
THE STORY OF LALANI FROM
MARYLAND AND HER MOTHER WHO
AFTER LALANI DIED WHO WORKED AT
GIANT AND SAID AFTER HER DEATH
GIANT FOODS MAILED THE FAMILY
HER FINAL PAYCHECK FOR $20.46
AND ISSUES RELATED TO RACISM AND
ANTI-ASIAN RACISM AND ANTI-ASIAN
HATE WE'VE SEEN DURING THE
PANDEMIC HAS BEEN A CRUCIAL
TOPIC IN MANY OF THE COMICS
PRODUCED BY ASIAN CREATE EORS F
EXAMPLE THIS ONE TALKS ABOUT
BEING ON PUBLIC TRANSIT WHILE
ASIAN OR THIS WOMAN TALKING
ABOUT COMFORT FOOD AND HOW SHE'S
BEEN RESORTING TO COMFORT FOOD
DURING THE PANDEMIC AND NOT ONLY
BECAUSE OF COMFORT BUT NO LONGER
FELT AT TIME WHILE WRITING THAT
IN THE SUMMER OF 2020 DIDN'T
FEEL COMFORTABLE GOING TO HER
LOCAL GROCERY STORE AND ONLY
FELT COMFORTABLE IN ASIAN SUPER
MARKETS BECAUSE OF THE
ANTI-CHINESE RACISM AND HATRED
TOWARDS ASIAN PEOPLE.
SHE SAYS FOR NOW I'LL FIND
COMFORT IN THE FOOD OF MY
PEOPLE.
QUESTIONING THINGS LIKE THE
MEANING OF A BUBBLE OR HAVING
THE WHITE CENTRIC NOTION OF A
FAMILY AS A NUCLEAR FAMILY, A
SMALL NUCLEAR FAMILY YOU LIVE
WITH AND NOT SEEING ANYONE ELSE
HAS BEEN QUESTIONED BY PEOPLE OF
COLOR.
THIS COMIC WHERE SHE TALKS TO
HER GRANDMA EXPECTING HER TO
VISIT AND TO BE WITH HER AND
EXPLAINING HOW SHE CANNOT VISIT
AND HOW IT TUGS AT PEOPLE IN
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR DIFFERENT
THAN THEY ARE FOR WHITE
FAMILIES.
A PLAQUE COMIC ARTIST TALKED
ABOUT GIVING BIRTH AT THE HEIGHT
OF THE PANDEMIC AND BEING
ISOLATED.
NOT HAVING ANYONE EVEN HER
PARTNER BE ALLOWED TO BE THERE
AND THE IDEA THAT THE FIRST TIME
FOR HER BABY TO SEE HER FACE
WHILE SHE WAS MASKED AND HOW
THAT WAS VERY SAD AND EVEN
THINGS LIKE PEOPLE OF COLOR
BEING ACROSS BORDERS.
THINKING INTERNATIONALLY AS
WELL.
THINKING ABOUT PEOPLE OF THE
GLOBAL MAJORITY.
HERE FOR EXAMPLE THEY WRITE
ABOUT BEING SEPARATED FROM HER
SIGNIFICANT OTHER WORKING IN
MALAYSIA AND THE ONE BRIDGE THAT
CONNECTS THE COUNTRY WAS CLOSED
MEANT THEY COULDN'T SEE EACH
OTHER FOR MONTHS AND MONTHS
THOUGH THEY WERE ONLY SEPARATED
BY A FEW MILES.
OR FOR EXAMPLE IN FROM BRAZIL
WRITING ABOUT BOLSONARO AND HIS
MISHANDLING OF THE PANDEMIC.
THERE'S SO MANY WAYS IN WHICH WE
SEE AUTHORS AND ARTISTS WRITING
ABOUT THIS UNPRECEDENTED FOR THE
FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE
COVERS OF SOME OF THE WORKS I
HAVE USED HERE.
THERE'S SO MANY MORE.
I WANT TO LEAVE YOU WITH A
COUPLE THOUGHTS.
ONE THOUGHT IS AND WHY ARE WE
SEEING MORE CREATORS OF COLOR IN
THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE?
ONE I THINK IS THE PUBLIC NATURE
OF COVID-19.
THE EMPHASIS HERE HAS BEEN
DISPLACED FROM THE CONFESSIONAL,
WHICH I'VE DISCUSSED ALREADY TO
SOMETHING ELSEWHERE THE "I" HERE
EVEN WHEN PEOPLE ARE WRITING THE
"I" A DIFFERENT "I" THAT
COMBINED THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE
COLLECTIVE IN WAYS THAT WERE
UNPRECEDENTED AND THE TWIN
PANDEMICS OF COVID-19 AND
SYSTEMIC RACISM OR THE RECKONING
WITH THE PANDEMIC OF WHITE
SUPREMACY AND SYSTEMIC RACISM
WHICH PROMPTED PEOPLE TO FIND
WAYS IN WHICH WRITING ABOUT THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC CAN BE AN
INVITATION TO WHITE HOW
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR AND
INEQUALITY WAS EXACERBATED
DURING THE PANDEMIC.
I WANT TO LEAVE YOU WITH A
COUPLE OF OBSERVATIONS.
ONE IS THAT A LOT OF THESE
COMICS WERE PUBLISHED ONLINE OR
PART OF EDITED ANTHOLOGIES OR
BOTH.
BUT NONE WERE SINGLE MONOGRAPHS
PUBLISHED IN PRINT, ETCETERA.
I MENTIONED THE FACT THAT 7 6%
OF PUBLISHERS AND EDITORS WHERE
WHITE.
ONE OF THE WHITEST INDUSTRIES OR
SECTORS THERE IS AND THAT'S A
HUGE OBSTACLE AND SOMETHING TO
THINK ABOUT.
PUBLISHING ONLINE HAS BEEN EASY
OR HAS BEEN MORE ACCESSIBLE TO A
LOT OF PEOPLE BUT THE OTHER WAYS
IN WHICH PEOPLE CAN BECOME PART
OF THE CANNON IS PUBLISHING THE
BOOK LENGTH GRAPHIC NARRATIVES
WHICH HAS NOT BEEN POSSIBLE SO
FAR FOR A LOT OF BIPOC CREATORS.
ANOTHER THING IS THAT WE'RE
SEEING A MORE EXPANSIVE VIEWS OF
GRAPHIC MEDICINE.
OF MEDICINE AND GRAPHIC MEDICINE
THAT PUSHES THE FIELD TO
THINKING BEYOND THE CLINICAL.
IT IS EMBODYING A VIEW OF SOCIAL
MEDICINE THAT UNDERSTANDS
DISCOURSE WITHIN A WIDER
POLITICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT.
AND THEN THERE ARE DIFFERENT
SUBJECTIVITIES AND THE
COLLECTIVE "I" IS DOMINANT EVEN
WHEN ONE IS SHARING A PERSONAL
EXPERIENCE IT'S OFTEN AN
EXPERIENCE REPRESENTATIVE OF A
WIDER COMMUNITY OR WIDER CONCERN
SHARED BY MANY AND THEN TO
CONCLUDE I WANT TO CALL ON THE
ETHOS OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE FROM
THE GRAPHIC MEDICINE MANIFESTO
THAT I THINK WILL HELP US PUSH
THIS FORWARD SO THAT THESE
INFLUENCES ARE NOT A TRANSIENT
PHENOMENON AS A RESULT OF THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC BUT WILL
HOPEFULLY HAVE A LASTING IMPACT
ON THE FIELD.
IN GRAPHIC MEDICINE MANIFESTO
THE EDITORS WRITE GRAPHIC
MEDICINE IS A MOVEMENT FOR
CHANGE.
THE CHALLENGE IS THE DOMINANT
METHODS OF SCHOLARSHIP IN HEALTH
CARE OFFERING A MORE INCLUSIVE
PERSPECTIVE OF ILLNESS,
DISABILITY AND CAREGIVING AND
BEING CARED FOR.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR TAKING
THE TIME AND WELCOME YOUR
QUESTIONS.
>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR A
FASCINATING TALK.
WE HAVE TIME FOR A FEW QUESTIONS
THOUGH WE'VE RECEIVED MANY.
I'VE TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF
COMBINING A FEW OF THEM.
LET ME JUST SAY SEVERAL PEOPLE
HAVE WRITTEN IN.
THANK YOU FOR THE INTERESTING
TALK.
IS THERE AN ONLINE REPOSITORY
FOR GRAPHIC MEDICINE?
YES, GRAPHIC MEDICINE DOT-ORG.
GO THERE RIGHT NOW, RUN, DON'T
WALK.
IT'S NOT EXHAUSTIVE BUT THEY'RE
COMPILING A LOT OF WORKS THAT
COME OUT AND THERE'S THE GRAPHIC
MEDICINE PODCAST WHICH YOU CAN
ALSO FIND LINKS TO ON THE
WEBSITE AND I MENTIONED THEY'RE
COMPILING THE COMICS UNDER THE
COVID-19 COMICS RUBRIC.
>> THANK YOU.
ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL WRITES THANK
YOU FOR YOUR TALK ON THE UNDER
STUDIED TOPIC AND THE ABILITY TO
CONVEY CONCEPTS THROUGH A
COMBINATION OF TEXT AND IMAGES.
WHEN WE WANT TO TRANSLATE THESE
WORKS TO OTHER LANGUAGES HOW DO
WE ENSURE THE IMAGE COMPONENT
TRANSLATES AS WELL AS THE TEXT?
ARE THERE EXAMPLES OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE BOOKS BEING
SUCCESSFULLY TRANSLATED AND WELL
RECEIVED IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES
AND CULTURES?
>> THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
TRANSLATION IS ALWAYS TRICKY.
OBVIOUSLY ADDING ANOTHER ELEMENT
THE ELEMENT OF THE VISUAL ADDS
ANOTHER LAYER.
IN SOME WAYS IT CAN FACILITATE
THE TRANSLATION.
IN SOME WAYS THEY'RE AN AID TO
UNDERSTANDING WHAT'S GOING ON
PARTICULARLY WHEN THE VISUALS
ARE UNIVERSAL BUT IN OTHER WAYS
CAN ADD A LAYER OF CONFUSION IF
THEY'RE NOT READILY TRANSLATABLE
OR LEGIBLE IN OTHER CULTURES OR
IN DIFFERENT CONTEXTS.
THERE'S MANY THAT HAVE BEEN
TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH AND TO
ENGLISH.
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ARE
EPILEPTIC BY A FRENCH CREATOR OF
COMIC ARTISTS AND THEN THERE ARE
MANY GRAPHIC NOVELS TRANSLATED
ON TO OTHER LANGUAGES SUCH AS
FOR EXAMPLE THE STORY OF MY TITS
BY JENNIFER HADEN TRANSLATED TO
ENGLISH AND WILL BE TRANSLATED
TO OTHER LANGUAGES AS WELL.
MARBLES, ETCETERA.
THERE'S A LOT OF GRAPHIC NOVELS
AND THERE'S THE SPANISH WHICH IS
THE SISTER WEBSITE TO GRAPHIC
MEDICINE WHICH HIGHLIGHTS WORDS
PRODUCED IN SPANISH AND IS ALSO
PRODUCING ORIGINAL WORK FOR THE
SPANISH SPEAKING WORLD.
I HOPE THAT ANSWERS THE
QUESTION.
>> YES.
I WANT TO RESERVE THE FEW
MINUTES WE HAVE LEFT FOR TWO
QUESTIONS.
ONE ABOUT THE PAST AND ONE ABOUT
THE FUTURE.
SEVERAL PEOPLE HAVE WRITTEN IN
OBSERVING THAT EDUCATIONAL AND
DIDACTIC COMICS ABOUT MEDICAL
CONDITIONS WRITTEN BY MEDICAL
PROVIDERS OR PATIENTS GO BACK TO
AT LEAST THE 1950s AND WERE
COMMON BY THE 1960s.
THE FIRST QUESTION IS CAN YOU
SAY MORE ABOUT THE WAYS IN WHICH
THE FORMAL FIELD OF GRAPHIC
MEDICINE DIFFERENTIATES ITSELF
OR ACKNOWLEDGES THE DIDACTIC
COMICS FROM THE 1950s, '60s AND
'70s AND WHERE DO YOU SEE THE
FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE GOING
IN THE NEXT DECADE TO TWO
DECADES.
>> GREAT QUESTIONS.
IN TERMS OF THE PAST THERE'S
LIBRARIANS AND A WHOLE LOT OF
LIBRARIANS IN THE FIELD OF
GRAPHIC MEDICINE ARE THE ONES
PARTICULARLY KEEN ON DOCUMENTING
THE HISTORY OF THE FIELD EVEN
BEFORE IT WAS CALLED GRAPHIC
MEDICINE.
THE DIFFERENT WAYS IN WHICH
VISUAL NARRATIVES AND PICTORIAL
DEPICTIONS WERE USED TO
COMMUNICATE CERTAIN IDEAS OR
EDUCATE THE PUBLIC, ETCETERA IN
THE FIELD OF MEDICINE.
SO I THINK IN PARTICULAR
LIBRARIANS AND ARCHIVISTS ARE
INTERESTED IN THAT UNCOVERING
THE LONGER HISTORY OF THE FIELD
AND TRYING TO MAKE SENSE IN THE
WAYS THE FIELD HAS CHANGED OR
NOT OVER THE DECADES.
AS FOR THE FUTURE OF THE FIELD.
AS SOMEONE IN THE FIELD OF
HISTORY, I'M ALWAYS LOATHE TO
COMMENT ON FUTURE WORK.
WE DON'T MAKE FOR GREAT
PROGNOSTICATORS OR PREDICTORS
BUT I HOPE THE FIELD WILL GAIN
MORE POPULARITY AND GAIN EVEN
MORE LEGITIMACY, IF YOU WILL,
THOUGH I DON'T REALLY LIKE THE
TERM.
THE IDEA OF BEING TAKEN
SERIOUSLY.
I CAN REMEMBER IT'S BEEN MAYBE
SEVEN OR EIGHT YEARS AGO NOW I
FIRST OFFERED THE IDEA OF
TEACHING A COURSE IN THE
DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY OF SCIENCE
THAT WOULD INCLUDE PRIMARILY
TALKING ABOUT GRAPHIC MEDICINE
AND BEING MET WITH PEOPLE'S
SCRATCHING THEIR HEADS AS TO
LIKE WHAT IS THIS?
ARE YOU TEACHING COMICS?
AND I'M LIKE, YEAH AND PEOPLE
BEING SKEPTICAL UNTIL I SHOWED
THE WEBSITE AND THERE'S AN
ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND PEOPLE WHO
WRITE IN A SCHOLARLY WAY ABOUT
THIS AND NOW PEOPLE ARE
ACCEPTING THIS MORE READILY AS
AN IMPORTANT WAY OF THINKING
ABOUT THE WORLD AND EVEN IN A
SCHOLARLY WAY AND EVEN THINKING
ABOUT COMICS AND MY COLLEAGUE
CO-AUTHORED RECENTLY PUBLISHED
AN ARTICLE IN MEDICAL
ANTHROPOLOGY QUARTERLY ABOUT THE
MULTI-MODALITY OF CITATION AND
THE POLITICS OF CITATION USING
COMICS.
THINKING ABOUT COMICS EVEN AS A
SCHOLARLY SOURCE AS AN IMPORTANT
WAY FOR PEOPLE TO ARCHIVE THEIR
LIVES ALSO IN WAYS.
WHEN WE THINK OF DIVERSIFYING
THE COVID ARCHIVE I THINK THIS
IS ONE OF THE WAYS IN WHICH WE
CAN THINK ABOUT PEOPLE DEPICTING
THEIR LIVES IN VISUAL WAYS AND
USING GRAPHIC NARRATIVES AS AN
IMPORTANT WAY FOR EVERYBODY
WHETHER THEY'RE IN THE FIELD OF
GRAPHIC MEDICINE OR OUTSIDE THE
FIELD AND TAKE THE PRODUCTION
SERIOUSLY.
I THINK AND AT LEAST THAT'S MY
HOPE AND THE MOMENT WE'RE
WITNESSING THEY WANT TO END WITH
IT'S HAD A HUGE IMPACT ON THE
FIELD AND ON WHAT WE'RE SEEING
AND ON WHAT COUNTS AS GRAPHIC
MEDICINE.
IN WAYS MORE INCLUSIVE OF
DIVERSE VOICES, DIVERSE WAYS OF
REPRESENTING THE WORLD THAT ARE
NOT NECESSARY ILY ALIGNED WITH E
CLASSICAL WAYS REFLECTIVE OF
WHITE MIDDLE CLASS MORALITY BUT
ARE EXPANSIVE AND PUSHING THE
FIELD FORWARD.
I HOPE THE FIELD WILL EMBRACE
VOICES AND DIVERSIFY THE CANNON,
IF YOU WILL.
>> THANK YOU, DR. BAYOUMI AND I
BELIEVE YOUR TALK WILL ENCOURAGE
MANY WHO ARE WATCHING TO EMBRACE
THE FIELD OF GRAPHIC MEDICINE IF
NOT VISIT THE WEBSITES YOU'VE
MENTIONED, PICK UP SOME OF THE
MATERIAL AND STUDY IT AND
CONTINUE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT IT,
BE FASCINATED BY IT AND ENGAGE
IT IN ALL THE COMPLEXITY AND
OPPORTUNITY YOU DESCRIBED.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND ALSO
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR
MENTIONING NLM'S TRAVELLING
EXHIBITION ON GRAPHIC MEDICINE
AND THE ORIGIN OF THAT PROJECT
BEGAN WITH A CONVERSATION WITH
MY FORMER COLLEAGUE PATRICIA
DRUY TALKED TO ME ABOUT THIS AND
I SAT SCRATCHING MY HEAD AND A
TESTIMONY TO THE LEADERSHIP AND
VISION IN COOPERATION AND WE NOW
ARE ENGAGED IN THAT COLLECTING
ROBUSTLY, REFLECTING CULTURE,
SOCIETY AND MEDICINE AND ALL OF
ITS COMPLEXITY AND CHALLENGES WE
FACE IN THE AREA.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR
PRESENTATION TODAY.
THANK YOU FOR PREPARING IT AND
FOR ENGAGING WITH US.
WE WISH YOU ALL THE BEST AND
LOOK FORWARD TO KEEPING IN
TOUCH.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I APPRECIATE YOU.
I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY.
TAKE CARE.
>> HAVE A GOOD AFTERNOON.
THANK YOU ALL FOR WATCHING.
BYE-BYE.
>> I'LL MENTION OUR NEXT TALK IS
GOING TO BE BY DR. WAYNE SINGH
ON MAY 11.
JOIN US TO SUNE IN AND WATCH
DR. SINGH'S TALK ON COVID
MEDICINE IN TAIWAN AND WE LOOK
FORWARD TO WELCOMING HIM AND
THANK DR. BAYOUMI FOR HER GREAT
PRESENTATION THIS AFTERNOON.
THANK YOU ALL FOR WATCHING AND
PLEASE TUNE IN IN THE FUTURE FOR
FUTURE HISTORY TALKS.
BYE-BYE.