It’s time for Comic-Con, and that means it’s time for CBLDF to lay down some education with panels at both the convention center and the San Diego Central Library! Whether you’re looking for the latest censorship news, tips for using comics in education, information about censorship and the law, or the always exciting CBLDF Live Art Jam, we’ve got it and more!
THURSDAY
CBLDF: Navigating The Powers & Perils of Banned Books
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez will lead a panel of librarians, educators, and creators in a lively discussion of how and why graphic novels are attacked by censors. They’ll detail how and why graphic novels can be successfully integrated into classroom curricula, and they’ll provide tools that educators can use to counter these attacks. Participants will leave the panel better enabled to advocate for their instructional materials and their students. Panelists include Carla Riemer (Librarian, Claremont Middle School, Oakland, California), Katherine Keller (TDRL Evening & Weekend Supervisor, University Libraries, UNLV), and Matthew Holm (artist, Babymouse, Squish, Sunny Side Up), and Judd Winick (Hilo: The Boy Who Crashed to Earth; The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius).
CBLDF: She Changed Comics
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Meet the women whose work changed what’s possible for free expression in comics! From the turn of the 20th century to today, women comics creators have inspired today’s landscape of increasingly diverse and empowering comics storytelling. Join CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez; contributors Casey Gilly and Caitlin McCabe; Ramona Fradon (Aquaman, Brenda Starr), Wendy Pini (Elfquest), and Lee Marrs (Wimmen’s Comix) for an examination of the women who changed the format!
At the San Diego Central Library
CBLDF Podcast Live: Banned Authors Speak Out
4:00 – 5:00 p.m. • Neil Morgan Auditorium
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund protects the comics that come under fire, but what is it that makes these comics so dangerous? San Diego music icon Rob Crow interviews Goon creator Eric Powell and special surprise guests for a freewheeling discussion about what makes comics loud, rebellious, and
dangerous.
FRIDAY
CBLDF: Comics in the Courts
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Some of comics’ greatest clashes never appeared within the panels — they were decided by a gavel! CBLDF board member Dale Cendali, an intellectual property icon known for litigating high profile cases (including in the Supreme Court), walks through the history of comics in the courts, examining some of the most important cases about such topics as the evolving nature of the protectability of characters, using real people to inspire characters, termination of rights and other hot issues. Slides showing the nature of the works at issue will be used in the presentation.
CBLDF: State of Censorship 2016
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Although free expression is seen as a basic human right, censorship is rampant in the United States and around the world. CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein presents an overview of the censorship crises facing cartoonists in 2016, from the violence and legal prosecution occurring around the globe to domestic attacks on comics and young adult books in libraries and schools across the country. Learn how comics and books are being challenged and what you can do to fight back!
At the San Diego Central Library
Events/Community Relationships for Comics and Librarians
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. • Shiley Special Events
Sven Larsen (VP of marketing, Papercutz), Betsy Gomez (editorial director, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund), and Lizette Serrano (director of library and educational marketing, Scholastic) explain how librarians can build programming to foster a love of graphic novels in their communities in a Q&A session moderated by Dawn Rutherford (teen services coordinator, Sno-Isle Libraries).
Censorship of Kids Comics
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • Shiley Special Events
Censorship is affecting more comics than ever, especially comics made for young people. Recent months have seen attacks on award-winning books like This One Summer and Drama, as well as increased targeting of diverse books. CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez leads a discussion with Gina Gagliano (First Second) and Carla Riemer (Librarian, Claremont Middle School, Oakland, CA) about what books are challenged, who’s affected, and what you can do stop the spread of censorship!
SATURDAY
CBLDF: Sex, Violence, and the Law
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
What does the law allow comics to say? CBLDF and FIRE team up for an in-depth look at the legal precedents that have been set that concern free speech and how they impact comics. Join FIRE President Greg Lukianoff and CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein for a freewheeling discussion and Q&A for creators, fans, and students about what the limits are for free expression in comics.
CBLDF: Banned Books Week
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Engage your community with Banned Books Week! This year’s Banned Books Week celebrates diversity, which is disproportionately targeted by censors. Join CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein, Erwin Magbanua (San Diego Public Library), Katie Monnin (Associate Professor of Literacy, University of North Florida), and Candice Mack (Los Angeles Public Library) to learn about why comics and books by diverse creators and featuring diverse characters are challenged, how to report and fight censorship, and how to make a celebration of Banned Books Week in your community!
SUNDAY
CBLDF E.C. Lives! Art Jam
12:15 – 1:45 p.m. • Room 5AB
Sixty years ago, E.C. Comics threw in the towel, shuttering everything but Mad Magazine when the Picto-Fiction titles failed to reach an audience. Although defeated by the Comics Code and the moral panic of the 1950s, E.C. left an indelible mark on the comics medium that’s still felt to this day. Join special guest artists, who will create art in tribute to the E.C. tradition before your eyes. These great creators will share their perspectives on censorship and make once-in-a-lifetime art to benefit the Fund’s important work defending the right to read comics. Get a chance to watch live art being created, learn about censorship, and bid to win the pieces made during the panel! All proceeds benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.