Three years ago the only daily newspaper in Houston dropped his column refusing to negotiate with his agent. This lead to some fans asking the newspaper to reconsider but editorial censors refused. Given the crisis in the newspaper industry, this may have been just another necessary amputation of others that would follow.
Lalo Alcaraz
Lalo Alcaraz is a talented syndicated Hispanic cartoonist who in the world of comics would be the John Stewart with a bit of raciness. He is not afraid to use his column as a national platform to have his say. This can be a risky proposition if one mixes race or ethnicity in the content. In recent times some newspapers have unilaterally dropped his column for being over the edge. Lalo is amused because in his field there is a process of creating an alternate strip if any paper considers a particular piece too controversial.
He claims his iconic brand “La Cucaracha,” one day came and spoke to him making him the offical mouthpice of Hispanic themed humor. His work is syndicated in many newspapers throughout the nation. His mind is a doodling factory full of spicy jalapeno chiles that just might set you on fire.
It’s been said that to a hammer everyone looks like a nail. It seems that to this comic everything looks like a joke or a parody waiting to happen. Those that read his strip are sure to be hammered by the put downs of his pesky Cucaracha.
On the surface he may appear to be a frivolous renegade but this cocky cockroach happens to be a graduate of Berkeley University. You can also listen to his sarcasm in his syndicated radio talk show on Pacifica Radio. What does Ken Burns and Lalo have in common? They both stereotype Hispanics, one with an insect the other with tropical fruit. He is deeply resentful of the absence of Hispanics in Mr. Burns documentaries of both World Wars as well as the labeling of Hispanics as mangos. That mango power just might make you chuckle to see an alternate reality through the eyes of a lowly Latino cucaracha.
