When asked to do so, Amy Cooper refused, and after he began recording the incident, she called the police, leading her to be charged with filing a false report. The moment went viral, and along with the death of George Floyd the same day, helped spur a resurgence in Black Lives Matter protests, as well as a renewed conversation about the way white women use the police to threaten Black people.
Now, the encounter has inspired ‘It’s a Bird,’ a new 11-page comic written by Christian Cooper, with art by penciler Alitha E. Martinez, inker Mark Morales, colorist Emilio Lopez, and lettering by Rob Clark Jr. The semi-fictionalized story follows Jules, a Black teenager whose life resembles Cooper’s own evolution from adolescent birdwatcher, to man in an unexpected media spotlight.
Available online for free, ‘It’s a Bird’ will be the first installment of “Represent!,” a digital anthology at DC Comics beginning in full next year, which will also spotlight the lives of other victims of racism and police brutality, including George Floyd, Amadou Diallo, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Philando Castile, Tamir Rice, Patrick Dorismond, Sandra Bland, and Freddie Gray.
Cooper said, “I hope young people read it in particular, and that they’re inspired to keep the focus where it needs to be, which is on those we have lost and how we keep from losing more. I wish this story could have been that punctuation of, ‘…and we all lived happily ever after.’ But it just keeps coming.” DC executive editor Marie Javins added the “series is designed to showcase and introduce creators traditionally underrepresented in the mainstream comic book medium.” More can be found from the creative team at DCComics.com, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.
‘It’s a Bird’ can now be read for free on readdc.com, comiXology, Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and more. According to the press release, “DC encourages you to share this story with friends and family and to talk about how you can inspire change in your communities. Many organizations — including Color of Change, Equal Justice Initiative, NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, National Urban League, and the Bail Project — are also working to advance social justice and civil rights in support of #BlackLivesMatter.”
