comics – Buddy-O Baker

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Buddy-O Baker

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A comic page. Panel 1: a white, shaggy-haired young adult with a blue shirt and glasses has a rainbow infinity symbol above their head and the panel is captioned "After high school, I found out I have ASD." Panel 2: The young adult's hair has been dyed a bright pink and cut into a mohawk, and the transgender flag colors are behind them: the caption reads "And that I am trans." Panel 3: The young adult sits cross-legged in a gray hoodie and blue shorts on a beige carpeted floor and facing away from the camera while deeply gloomy: caption reads "And that I have an anxiety disorder and clinical depression." Panel 4: The young adult, still wearing the hoodie and shorts, but now in flip-flops and with very unshaved legs, squats very low in a brightly-lit grocery store aisle packed with mostly nondescript boxes: caption reads "And more fun stuff, like extra flexibility and clinical OCD." — Nominated “Best Anthology” for Eisner, Ringo, and Graphic Medicine: won “Best Anthology” with Broken Frontier

A comic page. Panel 1: A young white adult contemplates quietly as dark fog starts to break behind him: caption reads: "At least I finally figured some stuff out." Panel 2: A plate of chicken tenders and fries with a dish of ketchup is sitting on a restaurant table: caption reads "Like why I eat the same meals." Panel 3: The young adult has the hoodie hood up and is frightened by a loud bang: caption reads "Why I don't like crowds or loud noises." Panel 3: The young adult, hoodie still drawn up and close, cowers in a crowd of nondescript yet intimidating people: caption reads "Why I don't socialize." Panel 4: The young adult sits cross-legged at an L-shaped desk making comics on a laptop and display tablet in a green room with tropical foliage visible outside the windows: caption reads "And why I spend a lot of time alone." — Nominated “Best Anthology” for Eisner, Ringo, and Graphic Medicine: won “Best Anthology” with Broken Frontier

A comic page. Panel 1 shows prescription bottles: caption reads "But I'm doing a bit better." Panel 2 barely shows the young adult in a dark closet with just their eyes peeking out: caption reads "Might not be out and proud yet." Panel 3: The young adult, now in a soft cold blue shirt and with a grown-out mohawk dyed a dark blue looks at himself in the mirror and scowls: caption reads "I know that I don't look right yet." Panel 4: The young adult, an out trans man, stands presenting himself in a bisexual-color striped button-up with short-cut hair and a mustache while a flash of rainbow ink explodes behind him: caption reads "But I can't wait to introduce myself to you. It's nice to meet you." In the bottom right corner of the panel is the artist's signature and the date, reading as "Baker 2021". — Nominated “Best Anthology” for Eisner, Ringo, and Graphic Medicine: won “Best Anthology” with Broken Frontier

A comic page. Panel 1: In a sparse bedroom, a lil buddy sits at a desk drinking from a large takeout cup and says "Wow, wouldja listen to this one... The National Institute of Health reports that non-cisgender people are 3 to 6 times more likely to be autistic." Panel 2: A pie chart is 60% grayed out, a third marked with the handicap pictogram, a tenth in the progress pride flag colors, and a small sliver with transgender flag colors: text reads "The Human Rights Campaign reported in 2021 that about 8 to 10% of the American population identifies as queer. Of that percentage, 1.5 to 2% identify as gender-diverse or transgender. According to the US Census, 25 to 33% of the population is disabled, and 2% of the population is autistic." Panel 3: Lil buddy daydreams and sees two hearts holding stick figure cartoon hands: text reads "I can only imagine what the numbers look like on a global scale! All those autistic trans folks out there... it boggles the mind!" Panel 4: The two hearts look confused as lil buddy continues: text reads "These are interesting statistics, I must admit. But there are other statistics that are much less fun."

A comic page. Panel 1: A trans man sits on the floor of a bathroom, holding his legs and dissociating: text reads "Transgender folks are 70% more likely to have mental health problems." Panel 2: Lil buddy is on the ground and looking peeved as the narration continues: "And our experiences are less likely to be taken seriously. Folks say a lot of things to try to disparage transgender autistics." Disparaging comments in text bubbles are as follows: "Everyone's a little autistic!"; "You're not trans: you're just confused because you're autistic."; "Neurogender and autigender aren't even real things!" Panel 3: Lil buddy sits on a couch in a therapist's office, looking a bit defeated: text reads "I try not to let this get me down. My therapist and I discuss how to handle my complex feelings in mature and responsible ways." Panel 4: A hand holds a phone in a bulky case open to a discord chat server: text reads: "My autistic trans friends and I support each other and try to stay positive. We provide mutual aid when and where we can." Panel 5: The phone screen is dark: text continues: "But it's not enough. Things need to change."

A comic page. Panel 1: A trans man in a gray room and wearing jeans, workout sneakers, a red hoodie and red beanie, and glasses looks at his phone and says "Disability rights and trans rights are the same. You can't have one without the other. The same is true for workers' rights, women's rights, and so on! We need to be able to continue to advocate for ourselves and fight for change, but we need allies to support us if we're going to make an impact." Panel 2: The trans guy points at a large billboard with printed listings and says "Here are some ways to help." The board says the following: "Voting for positive changes that will help marginalized people, including but not limited to disabled and trans people"; "Showing up for marginalized communities and marching with protestors"; "For those who are able, we willing to provide aid to those who need it"; "Standing in solidarity with other marginalized communities. A win for them is a win for all of us." Panel 3: A zoomed-out cartoon version of the trans man throws his fists in the air and shouts "Things won't change overnight, but I hope to live to see positive changes in the statistics that describe us. Autistic trans liberation! Fewer mental health problems! And better rights for everyone!" Panel 4: A close-up crop of the trans man just showing his bust shows his smiling face as he concludes the comic by saying "Now there's a future worth getting excited about." A note below the bubble in blocky handwriting reads "the end".

Buddy-O Baker

buddyfromearth@gmail.com

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