Q Toon: A Letter from Camp

A Letter From Concentration Camp, that is.

Obsessive readers of my toons will recall that Leo here got himself caught up in a dragnet of brown-skinned immigrants at the food pantry where he was volunteering. Having sent him off on this misadventure, I feel obligated to follow Leo’s story line and see where it goes.

I had originally intended for Leo and Max to stand in for our deeply divided country, engaging in a back-and-forth, getting each others' goats, and yet somehow remaining a couple. If I ever get Leo out of Trumplinka, I’m sure I’ll get back to that. 

Americans' divisions cut straight through family lines, as I was reminded during a big pre-Lenten party my husband's family has every year. I'm talking about a huge get-together of a hundred or so descendants of his great-grandparents, who came to the U.S. from Italy in the early years of the 20th Century. 

Most of the family recognizes that their forebears weren't exactly welcomed to this country with open arms. Yet until 1923, all they needed to do to be legal immigrants was secure passage on a boat, and once they came ashore, answer some questions from Port Authorities who spoke no Italian.

Those immigrants and their children opened up butcher shops and grocery stores, and/or went to work in the automobile factory. They built churches, founded social clubs, and went to war. More than a century later, some of the family are solid union Democrats and others are dyed-in-the-wool MAGA Republicans. Even among my husband's immediate siblings, nieces, and nephews, political conversations can get heated.

So, as an in-law, I didn't want to get into an argument when one of the cousins at Sunday's get-together started telling me how she only voted for Trump this time around because she operates a small business and Trump was supposedly good for small business. I wish nothing but the best for her small business, but I can't pretend that the Tigers Eating Faces Party is anything but a disaster for LGBTQ+ families like mine.

Or for Ukraine. Or for Palestinians. Or for our National Parks. Or for airline safety, Social Security, cities, farmers, home and auto buyers, health, the environment, our international alliances, or the price of eggs.

Or for the stock market. Or for the economy.

Or for small businesses.

We're starting to hear from Trump voters who are already getting hurt by Trump maladministration policies and are beginning to second-guess their votes. Unfortunately, the U.S. electoral system doesn't allow for do-overs.

One just has to hope that in 2026 and 2028, there will be enough of these voters who will have realized that there are issues more important to them than persecuting transgender people and Latinos.