Sophie Goldstein, 21, is a native of Los Angeles but switched allegiances to New York in 2003, where they eat Californians for breakfast. She’s currently a Senior at NYU double majoring in English Literature and Doodling with a minor in Caffeine Consumption.

She enjoys reading, writing, yoga, and having blank checks made out in her name. She is of the opinion that illustrating “Cheated” is a mighty step up from the last job her mom asked her to do -- which was walking the dog.

Sophie welcomes all comments, questions and lavish praise. She hopes you have an especially nice day today.

Sheri Myers was a blissful screen writing soccer mom until George Bush decided to rain bombs on innocent people in Iraq.

Her protests, which started with candles and signs at the neighborhood park, escalated to joining Code Pink actions in DC and then in NYC during the Republican National Convention. There she witnessed the mass arrest and illegal detainment of hundreds of law-abiding protestors, swept into nets by the police. This motivated Sheri to put all normal life on hold to help get John Kerry elected.

Deep in the heart of Bubbaville – central Florida – she worked as a volunteer coordinator, where she saw first-hand the depth of our country’s desire to rid itself of Bush. She KNEW that Kerry had won on November 2, 2004, and in the following weeks went back to her home state of Ohio to find out exactly how the theft of the election was conducted. All the citizen heroes with whom she traveled hand-in-hand on the Winter Freedom Ride from Columbus to DC in January 05, who fight to this day to restore democracy in our country...this is their story.

Though I've been a long-time reader of comics and am a political person, I never really felt a motivation to combine the two.  When it came time to create ‘Cheated!” I drew from a couple of political graphic novels that had inspired me:  "Persepolis", by Marjane Satrapi, "Palestine" by Joe Sacco, "Pyongyang: A Journey In North Korea" by Guy Delisle.  Both comics successfully portray and explore political issues of violence, disenfranchisement, and oppression through the lens of character and the strength of the narrator's unique viewpoint and style. 

With the aid of these predecessors I came to see that I could convey what was going on in Ohio not just through a dry listing of facts or a rapid succession of political caricatures (though there are a few of those) but by focusing on the people who Blackwell and his cronies hurt the most: the citizens of Ohio. 

Watching the faces on Linda Byrket's video and looking through tons of reference photos made me feel close to them -- even from a place as far away as Los Angeles, California.

If even one person picks up this comic and is somehow, through my art and my mom's writing, motivated to DO SOMETHING -- then it's been worth it.

Sheri: I was in Ohio after the 2004 Election, and I saw such incredible bravery and citizenship and heartfelt yearning for true democracy. When the vote was stolen in Ohio, when people were disenfranchised so cruelly and with such disdain, when they saw their votes flipped right in front of them, that's when I knew I had to do something. It was a huge cry for justice.

The Story of Stolen Ohio is SO important. The images are so powerful and potent. Images of people standing stoically in the rain, some joyous, some beside themselves with righteous anger. Braving the rain for hours, because they were sick of Bush, like we all were, and they were breaking open their hearts and feeling some hope. To have those hopes crushed is criminal. It’s so wrong. The question is,  "What do we do?"

We have - in Ohio - the lesson and the vision of justice that must be embraced and believed in.  Not only do we need to know how the votes were flipped and people were disenfranchised, but also we need to see how they stood up and demanded justice.  These are just folks who were willing to be inconvenienced, to lose sleep, to stick their necks out and suffer the damn Ohio cold and fight like angels in the name of democracy.

I had to create "Cheated!" because so few people realize that the Ohioans held public hearings, took sworn testimony, called for a recount, filed lawsuits, and protested. A determined brigade of citizens came in from all over the country and fought with them. Damn, that's inspiring.

So, that's what “Cheated!” is created to be -- a caution and a call to action; a tool that groups can use to educate everyone, especially the young people. So many Americans are disengaged or disheartened. Maybe "Cheated!" will light them up and inspire them to get involved.

When my daughter Sophie, whose art I have proudly flaunted since she was two, agreed to give "Cheated!" a shot, I knew our book was going to be amazing. She took the story and made it hers, with compassion, humor and brilliance. It was a dream come true to create this together (and I'm not just saying that because I'm her mom!).