You Don't Have to Fuck People Over to Survive

by Seth Tobocman

Cofounder of the magazine World War 3 Illustrated, Tobocman documents a decade of gentrification and fierce struggle in New York and the world at large.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Politics, Art, Nonfiction, History, Comic Book

140 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Radical comic book artist who has been living in Manhattan's Lower East Side since 1978. Tobocman is best known for his creation of the political comic book World War 3 Illustrated, which he started in 1979 with fellow artist Peter Kuper. He has also been an influential propagandist for the squatting, anti-globalist, and anti-war movements in the United States.

Reviews

[Mikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

so good……..

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the book that all punks have to read, and if especially obsessed, will photocopy pages and hang on their bedroom walls. If you pay attention to patches, you will have seen half of these graphics plastered on someone's back of their sweatshirt at some point in your life.

[LayDownYourSoul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievable.
Some standout quotes for my own reference:

"I cannot cry but I can fight. Because I can fight and you cannot"
"Unite. We can't lose... there are millions of us"
"I have no right to live. But I will anyway"
"There are solutions. Why aren't they being tried?"

Extremely raw and emotional, and overall very inspiring both from the message and the quality of the art and inventiveness in technique. Really cool seeing early use of computer programs for art too. Just an incredible work from incredible artists. Masterfully combines words and pictures.
So glad it's back in print!

[Kyra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and bold, and full of so many amazing graphics that will stick with me for a long time and that I will probably revisit.

I loved the combination of writing and visuals, and both enhanced the other so beautifully. A Statement from Jimmy was one of my favorite pieces and was so beautifully written. This was my first engagement with Seth Tobocman's works and I'm looking forward to reading more.

[Thomas Hale · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of street art, comics and political essays, mostly from the 1980s. Tobocman's style is powerful and confrontational, and his messages resonate just as strongly decades later, for better or worse. I would have liked some more longform writing, but the pieces that are here help to contextualise the artwork, and it is really striking artwork.

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful and disturbing, this book reminded me so much of my coming of age in Seattle in the early aughts, with the spores of the nineties still clinging to me. It’s an energizing book. This edition included a concise contextualization of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s imprisonment, which I could not peel my eyes away from.

[Daniel Quinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO THE MORAL IS ALWAYS USE A CONDOM AND ALWAYS PAY YOUR RENT AND DON’T BE LATE FOR WORK AND NEVER BREAK THE LAW CAUSE IF YOU FUCK UP, YOU’RE ALL ALONE x100000000000

Transmissions from life in Amerikkka. Business as usual.

[ivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A radical history of the United States in the 20th century, told through inspiring, terrifying, fantastical graphic images.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really powerful and violent art. Makes me want to do something better with my life.

[Lisa Pontén · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great artwork, important messages, read it

[Gabriel H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ferocious and hopeful.

[Mark Swanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first came across this book in the mid-1990s and like so many others, I was blown away by both the brilliant artwork and the powerful message of resistance to injustice. I still pull this book from my shelves every once in a while. I have to say, it leaves feeling more sad than inspired these days. You just don't see books like this anymore. There was something very diy about this book. It's not speaking to academics, it was speaking to people who rented or squatted and were trying to survive with no money or with shitty jobs. It was published at a time when underground and anarchist/punk culture was thriving in North America. People communicated their stories and politics and music through zines distributed at all-ages shows, infoshops and radical bookstores. Even the early internet had cool stuff like Indymedia and lively discussions on Infoshop.com. Who knew back then that zines and books like this would be traded away for the vapid data-mining corporate universe of Twitter and Facebook. And political art would be produced by celebrity artists and sold for millions.

[Elevate Difference · Rating 5 out of 5]

You Don’t Have to Fuck People Over to Survive is a collection of graphic work by comic artist and activist Seth Tobocman. The artwork dates back to 1980, when Tobocman and Peter Kuper founded the political comix magazine War World 3 Illustrated, and critical issues of this era are addressed, including Reaganomics, the AIDS pandemic, gentrification struggles in New York City, the occupation of Palestine, and the imprisonment of Mumia Abu-Jamal.

You Don’t Have to Fuck People Over to Survive was originally published in 1989 and then again ten years later. Both times it sold out quickly. This most recent acquisition and printing from AK Press is a sign of Tobocman’s work's longevity, and the continued demand for his politically conscious art.

Tobocman is a fixture of New York City’s downtown punk scene and the Lower East Side squatter’s movement. Chances are local readers have seen him in his Lower East Side neighborhood, maybe reading at Bluestockings or ABC No Rio. Tobocman, like his comics, is accessible, present, and engaged in his community. His comics have never been recognized or celebrated by the mainstream art market, which is not surprising considering his critique of bourgeois conformist politics, and Tobocman produces art for the street, not the gallery.

This latest release of You Don’t Have to Fuck People Over to Survive gives longtime fans, as well as first-time readers, a chance to enjoy Tobocman’s art and utilize his images (as activists and community organizers often have) to produce political posters, buttons, patches, and graffiti. The direct and utilitarian nature of Tobocman’s work, and of comic art in general, is so appealing because you get an immediate, straightforward, and high impact method of communication and direct action marketing. You Don’t Have to Fuck People Over to Survive is a creative, in-your-face resource and a critical tool for resistance.

Review by Jeanne Vaccaro

[jerx · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is mostly pictures and a few words but when i read it i was in awe and the raw images and hard hitting morals of each story in it made me think alot about society, cops, the enviorment, and mumia abu-jamal.
its very powerful and a very good read and the art is very strong in my opinion.
check it out if you can seriously.

[Ocean · Rating 4 out of 5]

i remember sitting on the floor of bound together books in san francisco when i was eighteen. this was the first book i grabbed from the shelves, and i read it all there, and it blew open my little mind. now, ten years later, i happened to find it in the zine section of my library (i guess it's too much for the card catalogue!) and it was still an interesting and vital read.

[pronoblem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had a chance to perform with Seth with (1/3 of) Urchestra - a band that I am part of. Seth - vocals, Eric Blitz - percussion, Andy Laties - sax, GLOVE - guitars, pronoblem - bass.

http://www.fluxmass.org/music/ursonat...

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

this isn't really a graphic novel so much as a collection of illustrations and comics seth tobocman produced over the years. it's surprising (and a little disheartening) to see how relevant his political images remain today.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a great spirit and sense of humor. Really lovely stuff. Came across it by chance in a used bookstore in Somerville.

[jack]

not as story oriented as war in the neighborhood, but seths art is soo good! lotsa great stencil style bits in here.

[Rob Haas · Rating 5 out of 5]

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!

[Rye · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The world is being ripped by men who trade in human blood."