Our stories connect us as one - Awesome Newcastle

Awesome Long Island, NY is funding Vishavjit Singh on his mission to teach Americans acceptance. Singh is a cartoonist, writer and costume player based in Harlem. The rise in bigoted rhetoric in recent months has led to an alarming rise in hate/bias attacks against many who are perceived as the ‘ultimate outsiders’.

Singh himself is turbaned and bearded American (follower of the Sikh faith) and has been targeted all his life, more intensely since the tragedy of 9/11.

Four years ago Singh illustrated a cartoon of a turbaned and bearded Captain America for the NYC Comic Con. This illustration led to a photographer asking him to dress as the cartoon hero, a request that changed his life.

Since he first dressed up, Singh has been traveling the US pushing people’s perceptions on what it means to be American dressed as Captain America. http://sikhtoons.com/captain-america-in-new-york-city.html

Singh is planning to do a mass print of newspaper sized single page prints with an illustration of turbaned/bearded Captain America ready to defend American values.The back page will tell the story of Singh’s life story through multiple cartoon panels. Singh plans to distribute these for free in NYC while dressed as Captain America.Singh’s message is simple. Don’t judge anyone based on their looks. Ask about people’s life stories, and then you will know we all have a lot more in common than our eyes lead us to believe.

This project is to counter the growing intolerance in America and a reminder the nation is great because of its incredible diversity.