Tracing the waves
Born Maureen Koch-von Reitzenstein in Germany, the author took the last name “burdock” to honor her interest in materia medica. In her line drawings, we feel the pressure of the title, as the author reminds us how hard it was in 2020 to catch our breath. “The Right to Breathe” overtly connects the covid-19 health crisis with the institutional and social determinants of health that disproportionately impact immigrants and Black Americans.
Burdoc depicts the coronavirus as a toothy and rotund monster that soon absorbs the fallout of systemic discrimination in America. “Alongside the devastation of the covid-19 curve,” she writes, “there is another curve in action: the curve of corruption–of unchecked might and wealth. It feeds on deep social injustices.” She cautions, “No mask or soap can touch this curve, which is wracking the social body.”