Join CBLDF at the ALA Annual Conference this Weekend!

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This weekend, librarians, writers, publishers, and bookworms descend on Chicago for the American Library Association’s Annual Conference, and CBLDF will be at booth #2650 with signings from Raina Telgemeier and Larry Marder, as well as the launch of CBLDF Presents Manga: Introduction, Challenges, and Best Practices, our new authoritative guide to manga for educators and librarians! ALA Annual Conference 2013 takes place June 27 – July 2 at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. The exhibit hall is open June 28 – July 1, and the conference itself is stacked with keynote addresses and panels featuring some of the biggest names in publishing.

CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein will take part in Busting the Comics Code: Comics, Censorship, & Librarians on Sunday, July 30, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. in N231. Brownstein will be joined by creators Brian Azzarello (100 Bullets, Wonder Woman), Gene Yang (American Born Chinese, The Eternal Smile), and Raina Telgemeier (Smile, Drama), as well as Carol Tilley, librarian and debunker of Fredric Wertham’s research (and occasional CBLDF contributor).

The ALA website has all the details:

Just as comics were once considered a plague that converted good kids into unrepentant juvenile delinquents, librarians have not always been on the side of comics as valued and quality reading. Thankfully, in recent decades librarians have becomes champions of comics as literature and fight the good fight against challenges to comics in libraries. Hear Carol Tilley, the dedicated researcher who’s investigations revealed the misinformation perpetrated by the (in)famous anti-comics child psychologist Fredrick Wertham in the 1950s, report on checkered history of comics, libraries, censorship, and the teens who spoke out eloquently in defense of their favorite medium. From there, creators, librarians, and a representative from the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund will talk about recent issues concerning comics, library collections, and challenges, and how we all work together to keep comics for all ages on our library shelves.

Come see us this weekend at ALA Annual Conference 2013, and pick up your copy of CBLDF Presents Manga: Introduction, Challenges, and Best Practices at booth #2650!