A Cartoonist Predicted This Stand-Off With A Fan In Redface, 12 Years Before It Happened

In 2002 Lalo Alcaraz drew a cartoon that would come to life in 2014, during the Cleveland Indians home opener last Friday.

This is the cartoon that Lalo Alcaraz, the creator of the first nationally-syndicated, politically-themed Latino daily comic strip, “La Cucaracha,” drew in 2002.

Via Twitter: @ClevelandFrowns

And then this happened – outside Progressive Field during the Indians’ home opener last Friday. A fan in "redface" spoke to a Native American protestor opposed to the use of the “Chief Wahoo” logo.

Via pocho.com

Alcaraz posted on his blog: "Am I a prophet? A time-traveling cartoonist?" He wrote, "One of my preferred topics for editorial cartoons has always been American mistreatment of indigenous people. Nothing makes me feel better than dreaming up a solid cartoon that reminds us all about the sordid history of our country's crimes against Indians. The only thing more satisfying is seeing my ideas validated."

Via youtube.com

It's not the first time the artist's work has been imitated in life, Alcaraz said. In 2012, GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney suggested as a solution to "illegal immigration" something Alcaraz had dreamed up as satire in 1994 – a "self-deportation immigration policy." He had created the character "Daniel D. Portado" back then to mock a California anti-immigrant measure.

Via forbes.com

The "self-deportation" idea did not bode well for Romney.

As for predicting the mascot stand-off, Alcaraz briefly entertained the idea of time travel in his blog. But, while it "sounds cool and otherwordly," he wrote, "the more likely scenario is that the Native American sportsball team mascot issue is not going away overnight, and has only moved a little since I drew that toon in '02.