Distribution

Local focus, local action

One characteristic that differentiates these comics from professional material is the fact that they are made mainly for local distribution. The comics are posted in public spaces such as community centers, bus stops, shops, offices, schools, notice boards and electricity poles. The readers usually know the organisation that has put up the comics.

This proximity is important: the source of the communication and the readers are not very far apart. People are very much interested in what their local organisations and activists have to say. The comics will show that some persons in the community feel so strongly about an issue that they make local campaign material themselves, rather than rely on materials produced by some distant campaign professionals from the capital or even from abroad. When they use wallposter comics, their message will get attention and create local debate.

Broadening the audience

For more concerted campaigning work, the available resources will always be the determining factor. Keep in mind, though, the ability to use the comics in several stages. If the comics are sent to the local press at the same time as posted on the streets, for example, this will also multiply the publicity for the issue at hand.

[Add in image from Barmer Girl]

Grassroots comics that have been made for a local audience can also be used for mass distribution across a region. This was the case in the Barmer Girl Child Campaign, in Rajasthan, India, in which comics made by villagers and activists in Barmer were later distributed in Rajasthan, because the messages were relevant for the whole area. A first voice communication by a community member has much more credibility and impact than a slick presentation by a communication professional.

Creating understanding

Grassroots comics from different groups and countries can also be shown in exhibitions or published in order to give an insight into how members of a particular group look at their lives and which issues are important to them. From their comics we can get a first-hand view of how a community tackles their problems. Such exhibitions and publications are filled with a lot of local cultural information, and sometimes it is difficult to translate that to a mainstream audience.

Even when the comics are not drawn on a professional level, the passion and confidence in the message come through.