The Dissidents (w/ Cartoonist Derf Backderf) | TCHR
About this episode
Chris Hedges interviews Derf Backderf about the role of political cartoonists during the era around World War I and the parallels to contemporary issues of repression and dissent.
The images created by socialist and antiwar political cartoonists during the period around World War I were powerful tools for countering the elite’s propaganda of the time. The Russian Revolution had just occurred, and in response to extreme wealth inequality, a militant working class was on the rise in the United States. The ruling class was afraid and responded to the growing dissent with severe measures – a massive propaganda campaign, laws that limited free expression, deportations, violence and imprisonment. It was an era that echoes the repression – ICE raids, the designation of Leftists as “terrorists” and restrictions of academic freedom - that is occurring today. In his new graphic novel, “Dissidents, Autocrats, Vigilantes, Communists, and Cartoonists,” political cartoonist and writer Derf Backderf analyzes this period through the untold stories of contemporary cartoonists who were targeted by the Wilson administration. Backderf joins Chris Hedges to discuss his new novel and its lessons for today on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report. Hedges and Backderf explore some of the most prominent political cartoonists and writers of the early 20th century, leftist…
People in this episode
Host: Chris Hedges
Guest: Derf Backderf
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Masses, American Protective League
Books & works: Dissidents, Autocrats, Vigilantes, Communists, and Cartoonists
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