BABY STRIP FEEDBACK

Most readers were very supportive of what I tried to do. A few others didn't like the first strip or two but supported all the rest. I even got one e-mail that persuaded me to change the ending of the second strip in my story.

One letter even accused me of making the story positive only AFTER the first strip cause a bad reaction so that I could "cover my butt." The reason why that couldn't have happened is that I hand in my strips at least a month before they're actually printed. I was finished with the story before the first one ever ran.

Below are samples of your feedback, both positive and negative. Thanks again for your support, I really appreciate it.
Jerry & the Boyz

First off, I would like to say that I enjoy reading the Mama's boyz comics. The storylines are realistic and funny. I really enjoyed the stories on AIDS and the teen pregnancy. Those topics need to be made known to young people so they can be aware that AIDS and pregnancy among teens are real. I could relate to "Karla" in the sense that I too, am a teen mom. (I had my baby at 18 and I am now 19)

And while I have a lot of support from family, friends, and even my fiancee, dealing with sleep deprivation was tough! And its hard for these young girls to realize that. But anyway let me stop boring you with my story. But I just wanted you to know that I enjoyed your comics. =)

Keep up the great work and Happy Holidays to you and your Family.
Shaniece

I think you wrote a good set of strips on the topic. I wish you'd CC: the editors of the Sentinel so we could write you and them at the same time. Whoever pulled your strip was utterly spineless.

I went to your Website over the weekend and honestly did not find the comic strips offensive. I am a young/single mother and had my daughter at 15yrs old. I am now 27yrs. People need to learn to laugh. I think people become offended because they are embarrassed. I fit right into the comic strip with the pregnant teens ( well I did 11yrs ago). You are not making this stuff up. It's reality. And in this day and age our children need that. It's time we cut out trying to shelter them. They are growing up alot faster and without us. Continue the good work and you have my support!

I found your comic strip to be very funny and informative. I think that this would be a good tool to have in the elementary and secondary schools because I'm sure there are a lot of kids who think like Yusuf, that it's an easy job to raise a child, but they don't realize that it is a job you have for life. You can't call in sick or play hooky from being a parent. You get no pay but the benefits cancel out all the sacrifices that we make.

I hope you get the chance to display your comic strip in one of the major newspapers, magazines or on television because you are very talented and as I said before, kids would benefit from your knowledge.
--U.S. Department of Education--

I thought that was great! I will be showing that to my daughter (age 15), whose friend who just turned 15 is having a baby! Thanks for the message that should have been sent to all communities!

As a young African-American female in this generation I found the comic amusing. I am not offended by it even though both my mother and my sister had their children at a young age and unwed. It is an eyeopener and a flash of reality that should be taken sriously but at the same time it can also be laughed about.

Parents need to realize that if they want their children to follow the right path they need to be the role model for them and stop depending on society to do all of the work. True, children are influence by the media and society, but it is also the parent's responsibility to interpret, reject, or accept what society tells their children. Keep up the creative and realistic work.

I thought your baby strip was wonderful. Any fool can see that see that the series was advocating against teen-age pregnancy and for responsible parenthood. It's appearance above an article on mental health was also appropriate. Most people don't know that a significant part of community mental health now deals with these problems, including gang activity and the dysfunctional approach to life presented by many of our children.

Responsibility for this dysfunction can also be attributed to our poor educational system. Go after the teacher. Her handwriting ain't so hot either.

I've learned that the people who stir up the trouble are the ones who are not going to do anything. What other way to curb teen pregnancy than with satire? You try to reach them using "any means necessary."

I think the strip has a wonderful message in a format that will appeal to the intended audience. Whoever was so "appalled" is not living in reality. However when only viewing the particular strip and not following the series, it could seem that you are simply making fun of teenage mothers instead of delivering a good message in the strips that follow. Overall, I like "Mama's Boyz".

Dear Jerry,
...I have to say that I was offended by what I read. I read the column in its entirety, and though I realize there is a lot of good intent in there, the first installment standing on its own does seem offensive to me. I was a young mother (aged 20, but looked 14 or 15), and though that is not as young as some, and I was married also, that didn't stop people from treating my like i was young, black and ignorant. i was turned down for several apartments, jobs etc. because people assumed I would make more babies, tear up their apartments, not show up for work, collect welfare, and whatever other stereotype goes along with that kind of thinking. however, I don't know if I agree with the paper canceling your strip, because that's an infringement on your freedom of speech, and your creative process.

I assume you're black, and so it seems a harmless observation on your part. I'm sure you were aware of what you were saying, but I can see how you wouldn't think it particularly offensive to people. I don't offend easily, and I did view that particular strip as harsh, still I don't know if that means it shouldn't be printed. Writers are supposed to shake the reader, give food for thought, and so forth, aren't they?

I don't know if what I've said helps but those are my thoughts, and by the way, just because the reading teacher made grammar errors (ironic though it may be), doesn't mean he or she can't have a negative feeling about what you've written. Things strike people a certain way sometimes, they're reacting to their honest feelings. anyways, good luck to you.

Hello Jerry,
I saw the comic strip. I am in Boston, MA. I would have been one of the protesters against the cartoon in PG county had I had the chance. The same for the second cartoon on the site with the kid in the 'hot' closet.

All of the other cartoons on the site were fine and entertaining I thought. They made positive statements of a bad situation I thought. For example. It takes a man to father a child after birth not just up to birth, and motherhood is tiring sometimes, and changing diapers is something faithful mothers do all the time.

My issue with the first cartoon is it pokes fun at a situation that to me is VERY serious. Kids having kids is not something I would ever think of laughing at. Especially Black kids. Same for people on drugs or other dependent substances and a few other issues I hold as taboo. I hold these things as taboo for humor in my own mind and family despite the larger society's "acceptance". Why? Just because it happens and may happen often does not mean that I should condone it or accept it as valid for me.

I do not live my life by opinion polls. So if you see something and say, "aw, it's no big deal." I might still reject that thing as extra-normal.

In short, because others accept it, does not mean I do or will accept it if I think it is a cause for concern or a source of degradation in our community. We all have different thresholds of tolerance. The first two cartoons pass that threshold for me. I punish my kids and other kids in my family for things they do but, it is lazy (intellectually) to lock a kid into a hot closet. Parents that do that are problems, causing more problems and failing to see the problems that they are causing. You, by putting that in there are aiding and abetting(sp) in that lazy, thoughtless manner of discipline.

Again, lack of discipline in the Black community is a serious issue so I will reject anything that I interpret as perpetuating it. Finally, I do make interpretations for who the audience is of the cartoon. There are things that I will give credit to Black people for being able to understand and put in context. I prefer to leave no room for interpretation when it comes to communicating to Whites or the broader society on issues that are charged emotionally or complex. We have too much history of mis-interpretations and malice from a small, ignorant segment of the White population.
Regards.

I read the complete strip. I was not offended by it. I was a mother at 18 and that joke only bothers people who have tunnel vision. In reality there are a LOT of young women out there who have babies. If the men knew what it was like to care for one maybe, just maybe they would be more careful. Keep the Faith. Doors close and doors open. The Lord will take care. You do a good job. Don't let them stop you.

I'm asking myself "What's the PROBLEM?" You know the old saying, "Many a truth is said in jest!" We'll I think you did a good job of jesting in truth. You SHOUTED a message that young women & men (teens), particularly minorities need to "SEE" out loud. Your messages are often whispered by family and friends behind these young girls backs after they get pregnant. The education needs to start long before they reach puberty.

I know because I raised two girls and not only did I stay on my soap box about pregnancy and parenthood, I gave them responsibilities that weighed as heavy as a parental duty but without the obligation of a child. They could tell from those daily responsibilities that they definitely were not ready to be a teen parent. Keep on Keeping on. Say it loud and clear. Represent the controversial issues. I believe your message in the strips will reach some teen co-eds. You have to believe it too.

I personally wasn't offended and I was a single mom (at 19 years old) for 10 long years before I found "Mr. Right". I found the strip a call to awareness about responsibility both on the part of males and females. It's just sad that many of us are not taught that you should be married before you have children and that even sex before marriage is a sin. Your strip was merely a wake up call for black parents of adolescent children.

Ouch! I can see how some of those cartoons my have hit a nerve with the general public. Even though the satirical commentary is unfortunately a true look at the high rate of young mothers, it may have been seen as an indictment of African-American teen girls. I think your comics also point out the difficulties of young parents, which was probably overlooked. Nonetheless, I think the Sentinel's reation was an over-reaction. I like your work. It has teeth, and smacks at real issues. I hope you can continue.

...I am a thirty year old single mother. My daughter is only five, but I still think ahead to when she will become a teenager and all of the perils that are involved with that age. I read your strip and at first I just smiled. Then during my third read, I thought what the hell is wrong with those folks in Maryland? The creator of this comic strip is just "keeping it real."

Maybe that "reading specialist" was offended because they arent living in the real world. A world filled with crime, violence, hatred, drugs and teenage promiscuity. The teenagers in Prince George should have read your comic strip and went out and bought a pack of condoms! They should have been embarrassed that their generation has gotten so out of control and formed a support group within their middle schools and high schools so they wouldnt become the characters in the comic strip. And the way that you brought to light the point, that even though you may be a parent doesnt make you an adult should be applauded.

The adults of Prince George should also feel shame because when this ran in their local paper, they should have sat their children down and explained to them the importance of celibacy. Instead they hid like scared rabbits and signed a petition to silence the brutal truth.

I am currently checking out the rest of your website and want to commend you on your work. I wish you continued success and when I go home tonight I will sit down with my daughter and give her a brief overview of the "facts of life." Five really isn't to young to start with the basics. And since I am a member of the "real world" I am aware that teens and even pre-teens are sexually active and the numbers are growing steadily. I will be on the lookout for more of your work and appreciate your time in reading my response. Thank you.

Jerry--As ever, I find your cartoons socially provocative, daring and totally redeeming. You should note that whenever these adjectives are attached to a body of work/art there is certain to be some who will be offended. That's the price you pay for being out front, in your face and controversial. Don't worry, for every reader who condemns, there are probably ten who applaud. Problem is, though, they dont' write and agitate. Keep on writin' and drawin' the heat. It merely means you have struck a vital chord in our social matrix--and that's good!

Good Stuff. Too often, in the hood, we like to keep our dirty laundry in the closet, and deny that we have faults and problems. I suppose that we have learned our lessons from the massa' far too well. Keep it up.

I have no problem with your toon. Granted, if the author was a White person, we would have cause to complain. But these types of editorial comments from Blacks to Blacks should stimulate the type of discussions we need to have in our community. Hang tough.

I think people let their emotions get ahead of their ability to be objective. Seeing Mama's face told me the story of her surprise and disbelief at seeing the age that young ladies are becoming mothers. Maybe I missed something, so please let me know if I have. Having said that, I also thought the rest of the story was great. A good lesson from a caring mother. You need to be able to express the realities of what is going on in the community through your strip. I personally believe that you have too much honour for your people to be disrespectful. This letter is from the publisher of the KIP Business Report, a publication that actually ran the "controversial" strip.

I was saddened and angered by the overreaction of some of the residents of Prince George's County to your strip. The strip in question, I think, provided a biting social commentary about a very real issue in our communities---teen pregnancy/parents. Undoubtedly, there is a disturbing irony in the fact that someone deemed too young to see movies such as "The Wood", "Lake Placid" or "The Thomas Crown Affair" without a parent, can in fact herself be a mother responsible for raising children. Yet that's exactly what's going on in many of our communities (and increasingly in white communities as well, mind you) every day. The strip was not a "negative portrayal of our children" as the author of the flyer wrote. Clearly, they missed the point. It was the portrayal of a very real situation that has plagued a segment of our community for years.

Failing to find humor in the strip is one thing---they're entitled. Wanting to censor Mama's Boyz because it explores a truth some prefer not to face is appauling (er, I mean, appalling.) And, it won't make the problem go away.

While I applaud their vigilance in fighting against what they perceive are negative portrayals of Black youth, I believe their actions here are misguided. I implore them to take the time to familiarize themselves with your entire body of work. If they did, they would discover that Mama's Boyz is perhaps the only comic strip consistently painting a positive portayal of Black youth.
You, in the mean time, must keep telling it like it is.
Best regards,
Cynthia Franklin

I'm a black female who is 20 and I feel that that comic strip was a wake up call that was needed to educate our young mothers and fathers. You know some think its cute to have a baby. Right now we have so many young mothers single with babies and it makes no sense. Some of us that work and have to pay taxes , we are the ones who take care of them. I myself have decided to wait to have kids until I am financially set and can be there to take care of them. I love kids but I can wait. I want to get my education and then think about a baby. It is sad that most of these teens that are pregnant are either single, on the street, alone, or have no assistance. Your comic strip , In my oppinion was excellent. You told the truth and thats what we need to hear.