Vancouver illustrator's poignant editorial cartoon about protective hero at Florida school shooting goes viral

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      When Vancouver illustrator Pia Guerra heard about the February 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, she responded by creating an editorial cartoon that has struck an emotional chord on social media.

      Guerra's editorial cartoon is entitled "Hero's Welcome", which depicts a young girl leading assistant football coach and security guard Aaron Feis to a crowd of people.

      Feis was one of the 17 victims when a former student, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School with an AR-15 assault-style rifle. Cruz killed 14 students and three staff members. Another 15 people were injured. Cruz has since been charged with 17 counts premeditated murder.

      The 37-year-old Feis reportedly threw himself in front of students to protect them during the shooting. He was reported to have pushed one girl out of the line of fire before he died from wounds. 

      The assembled group of children and adults in Guerra's cartoon represents victims of previous shootings.

       

      After only two months into 2018, already eight shootings at schools have taken place across the U.S.

      The shootings have raised discussion about educators being thrust into the role of bodyguards, protectors, and human shields.

      Guerra has illustrated graphic novels, including Spider-Man: Unlimited, Doctor Who: The Forgotten, and Y: The Last Man (which she co-created with writer Brian K. Vaughan), but she has recently expanded into editorial cartoons.

      Her cartoon of a small U.S. President Donald Trump sitting in the lap of then–White House strategist Steve Bannon, with Trump exclaiming "I'm a big boy!", went viral in January 2017.

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      You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at @cinecraig or on Facebook

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