New Directions in Active History-Sean Carleton and Julia Smith, Comics as Active History: The Graphic History Collective

Sean Carleton and Julia Smith, PhD Candidates at Trent University, are representatives of the Graphic History Collective, a group of activists, writers, artists, historians, and researchers who are passionate about comics’ history and social change. Sean opens by discussing the history of comics and the emerging style of writing through the late 19_th and early 20_th centuries, and ties that history into the establishment of the Graphic History Collective group. Julia then discusses their newest project, titled “Drawn to Change: Graphic Histories of Working-Class Struggle,” its origins and the themes that drive it.