Cartooning from the right: Israel’s Religious Zionist cartoonists and the judicial overhaul

Abstract

ABSTRACT Political cartoons are valuable cultural artifacts which not only capture moments in time but also offer the illustrator’s insight into those moments. This essay examines how three of Israel’s Religious Zionist cartoonists have illustrated the first three months of the 2023 nationwide protests and the judicial overhaul that sparked them. Shay Charka, Or Reichert, and Reut Bortz all self-identify as members of the Religious Zionist community but their cartoons show diverse reactions to the protests and proposed legislation. Examining their works provides insight into how the cartoonists themselves are navigating significant changes in their own society and also what messages are being conveyed to the Religious-Zionist readership. What emerges from this analysis are thematic overlaps in which the artists draw upon common visual tropes and themes but offer distinct readings of the judicial overhaul and the protests that ensued. The value of analyzing the three cartoonists’ work in this way is that it provides insight into the messages that are disseminated to the wider Religious Zionist community given their role as figures who shape and construct Religious Zionist ideology and mentality.