Je suis Charlie

written on Wednesday, January 7, 2015

I usually do not write about politics, but this evening I am going to make an exception.

In case you haven't heard the news, this morning gunmen entered the building of Charlie Hebdo, a French satiric newspaper, and opened fire on journalists, killing 12 people.

I am deeply affected by all those tragic deaths, but one of them hurt me even more: Jean Cabut, known as Cabu. Cabu was a long time anarchist who drew caricatures for many satiric newspapers, but he was also part of a TV show for kids: Récré A2. In this TV show Cabu drew live to illustrate whatever was happening. I was around 6 or 7 by then and I remember being amazed by the precision of his strokes, especially since he was drawing directly with an ink pen, without any prior sketching.

I can't find a good video of Cabu drawing, but the author of this homage does a good rendition of how he drew: http://youtu.be/N_glhkomC80.

This evening it feels like a piece of my childhood (and of others French people around my age) has been murdered. May Cabu, his colleagues and the two policemen who died today rest in peace.