Framing the Debate
When Tony Auth created this cartoon, same-sex marriage had only recently been legalized in Massachusetts, and debate on the topic flared across America. Both drawings, ink and digitally produced, demonstrate a bold use of black space and strong graphic lines. Auth’s use of reverse lettering on the darkened steps of the final version dramatically reinforces the idea of progression within the historical context of other constituencies’ struggles for equal civil and human rights. A Pulitzer Prize and Herblock Prize winner, Auth has been editorial cartoonist for the Philadelphia Inquirer since 1971.
When Tony Auth created this cartoon, same-sex marriage had only recently been legalized in Massachusetts, and debate on the topic flared across America. Both drawings, ink and digitally produced, demonstrate a bold use of black space and strong graphic lines. Auth’s use of reverse lettering on the darkened steps of the final version dramatically reinforces the idea of progression within the historical context of other constituencies’ struggles for equal civil and human rights. A Pulitzer Prize and Herblock Prize winner, Auth has been editorial cartoonist for the <em>Philadelphia Inquirer</em> since 1971.