Kieran Kissler- Cartoon accurately depicts immigration law

Provide an example where humor was used in digital/networked media to make a serious political or cultural argument. Was it effective?

This cartoon, courtesy of eaglecartoons.com, paints an accurate picture of what is actually happening in Arizona. In 2010, a law was passed that requires all aliens to carry immigration papers and be subjected to random police stops. It also gives power to law enforcement to determine what an illegal alien would like. The law as a whole has caused great controversy, specifically the power that is given to law enforcement as many people have charged the law with racial profiling.

As shown in the image, the officers are stopping a man with tan skin. The humorous aspect is applied with the male officer holding different paint chips up to the man’s head. It portrays what many perceive the law to be-- a guessing game at best.

The cartoon is also an example of interactive humor, according to the reading by Shifman. More than just a funny photo, it’s interactive in nature because it requires something from both the cartoon and audience. The humor was only successful because I was aware of the law and controversy surrounding it.

It also provides an example of argumentation used through humor. As proved by Cicero, humor has been used for centuries as a rhetorical strategy. While this image pokes fun at the police, it ultimately places the heat on the lawmakers and state leaders. The artist created a ridiculous scene by putting familiar concepts (racial identity;paint chip) together; normally, one would never identify someone else’s race by holding a paint chip up to their head. Because the scene in the cartoon is so absurd, it provides the audience with a different lens in how they should look at the law. The cartoon is extremely effective because of the success it has in comparing an unthinkable scene to reality.