AOW 10 Visual

Gaddhafi gives a Democracy lesson to Scott Walker

Created by Kaveh Adel, a member of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists, this political cartoon, “Gaddhafi gives a Democracy lesson to Scott Walker,” relates the riots in Wisconsin to those in Libya; both happened around the time this cartoon was made in 2011 (exigence). Scott Walker is holding a pair of scissors, while the crowd next to him is holding signs that read “Jobs” and “Education” suggesting that they are responding to Walker’s funding cuts in these areas as result of the poor economy. Walker is scratching his head with a skeptical look on his face as Gaddhafi shows Walker how he handles the outcries for democracy in his country: he destroys them with missiles and bombs. At the time that these riots were occurring, there was a rumor in America that the riots against state and federal funding cuts could turn as radical as those in Libya and other Middle Eastern countries. This cartoon had the purpose of rejecting those rumors: with the use of facial expression, Adel showed that Walker did not believe Gaddhafi’s response to his protesters was right, and would not shower bombs and missiles on the American crowds. Adel also rejected that rumor with placement: Walker is lowering his hand holding the scissors, which represents that he has stopped funding cuts and is trying to figure out what to do in response to the public’s protests – another difference between the two rioting situations. Adel appeals to pathos by including a child in the crowd rioting against education cuts in Wisconsin. Not only does this evoke sympathy for the Wisconsin rioters, but it implies another difference from the riots in Libya because there are no children in Gaddafi’s riots. This is because the rioters in Libya and the rest of the Middle East were mainly independent-minded college students who wanted to improve their country, not innocent parents and children responding to funding cuts in jobs and education that hurt Wisconsin families. Adel did achieve his purpose, because it is clear to the viewer that the riots in the Middle East and the riots in Wisconsin in 2011 were not similar, and therefore could not be executed or handled the same way.