Customs

CBLDF Case Files – Canada Customs Case

Imagine traveling to another country and having your comic books and electronic devices seized. Then, you’re arrested because of the books you read. This may seem like a horror story, but for one comics reader, it’s come true. Right now an American citizen — we’ll call him Brandon, although that’s not his real name — is facing a minimum sentence of year in a Canadian prison and being forced to register as a sex offender. Just for having comics on his laptop. This incident is the most serious in a trend the CBLDF has been tracking involving the search and seizure of the print and electronic comic books carried by travelers crossing borders. more…

CBLDF Advisory: Legal Hazards of Crossing International Borders With Comic Book Art

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has received an increasing number of reports from travelers who have been stopped, searched, and/or detained by customs agents because of comic book art. In one recent incident, an individual was detained at the U.S.-Canada border while en route to an anime/manga convention. He was handcuffed and held briefly on charges of child pornography, and his materials seized. Such tactics, focusing on expressive materials that are presumptively protected by the United States Constitution, are even more troubling to the extent border searches are not limited to hard copies of materials in a traveler’s possession. Customs agents also may search for information stored on electronic devices, including cameras, laptop computers, cell phones or other storage devices, or on electronic media, such as flash drives or DVDs. Such searches may be conducted at random, with or without reasonable suspicion, and are becoming increasingly common. more…

Comics Seized by Canadian Border Officials

The Canadian Border Services Agency is known for seizing materials depicting horror, violence, and sexuality, and their scrutiny of comics is on the rise. Any comic, graphic novel, or manga brought into Canada is subject to their searches, whether in print or on electronic devices such as a laptop, cell phone or tablet. Previously, the CBLDF issued an advisory for traveling safely with comic art across international borders. Now, we take a closer look at the situation at the US/Canadian Border. more…

Understanding Canadian Laws that Impact Travelers with Manga

Canada has strict obscenity and pornography laws that have previously resulted in arrests, prosecutions, and convictions of those with comics and manga. This resource is an outline of some of the legal issues which comic book and manga collectors need to be aware of when either traveling to Canada or conducting transactions, online or otherwise, with Canadian entities. more…

Canada Customs Case Advertisements

With the announcement of CBLDF’s Canada Customs Case, CBLDF gained a valuable new partner in the fight for Free Speech: Bonfire Agency. Bonfire, a firm specializing in pop culture marketing, took on the heady task of helping CBLDF reach out to supporters with the first consumer advertising campaign in CBLDF’s history. Thanks to Bonfire, you can also run print ads, post a banner on your website, or provide an informative pamphlet to your customers. more…

Defending Privacy – US Border Guide for Travelers Carrying Digital Devices

In 2016 the number of electronic media searches at the US border more than quadrupled going from 4,764 the previous year to 23,877. As the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF) writes “Every one of those searches was a potential privacy violation.” Each year more and more of our lives are minutely detailed on our digital devices, so how can travelers keep their digital data safe? more…