Depth Charge Media PrezeNts: Orrior Comix: Comix Duel Invite to Zig Zag

This zine was originally self-published (in a very small circulation, under 50) with the intention to challenge Zig Zag of Zig Zag Comix, to a "comix duel", due to two things: One, his perpetuation of colonial paradigms of violent reaction to aggression, and two, to challenge a prevailing concept, if I remember right, of his and the canadian Native Youth Movement's perpetuation of a 'character assasination'-type initiative against John Trudell, surrounding the John Graham debacle.

See, for more info, http://indigenouswomenforjustice.org/

At the time this zine was self-published, in the spring of 2007, there was a large internet and offline attack going on in the alternative/Left media (i.e. Earth First!) that was "smearing John Trudell" (see www.counterpunch.org for that exact title). My voice and counterpunch's voice appeared to be the only voices defending Trudell, a longtime leading voice of depth work and thought who has gone through a gamut of cointelpro-style attack, including his family getting killed in a very suspicious fire when he was chairman of the American Indian Movement.

Anyhow, my challenge to Zig Zag, personally, on the issue of perpetuating and glorifying violence against people may sound arrogantly naive (certainly so, to many anarchists), but my view is based on indigenous values as exposed by the indigenous scholar and Mohawk warrior Gerald Taiaiake Alfred. If you read page 130 and 131 of his important book "Wasase", you will see what I am saying better.

Also in this zine, Trudell is quoted challenging the value of violent reaction/response, as you will see.

So, from these two voices, I stand.

I am indebted to the indymedia project for saving this comic on their site for many years. For example:

http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2007/01/351868.shtml

There is a short text accompanying the comic there, but it doesn't include that the Native Youth Movement (NYM) apparently has distanced itself from Zig Zag, a.k.a. Gord Hill, a Coast Salish Native artist.

It is apparent that Hill responded to my comic with one drawing, but I am not sure. He made a drawing of a powerful Salish spirit tearing off the head of a settler-type. If i made art responding to that, i would have ghost upon ghost rising out of the body, to show that killing solves nothing, and often only perpetuates such stupidity.

Yes, all have to protect themselves when they are aggressed upon and all other avenues are closed, as any reading of Coast Salish history shows. They had no choice. But today, are there no avenues open to us, as decolonizing settlers in solidarity with indigenous ways of seeing and being? I do not think so (and my praxis exposes many options), and challenge the quick habit to perpetuating stupidity in any form.

Dialogue welcome!