The new year brings new challenges for free expression through the comic arts, and thanks to your support, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is here to protect your rights!
Censorship Levels Up
Comics had already been the primary target of the censorship surge that started during the pandemic, but after a whirlwind 2025, we’re now experiencing a level of intensity not seen since the CBLDF’s early years.
School and library challenges
Attempts to limit access to graphic novels and manga continue to be rampant in communities nationwide. No comic is immune. Memoir, superheroes, adventure, sci-fi, literary adaptations: sometimes the targets are specific books, but there are also efforts to restrict all graphic novels and media to adults, not to mention exclude them from public schools and libraries altogether.
Happily, we continue to be successful in resisting these challenges, and we are inspired by every courageous librarian, teacher, administrator, and local supporter we meet!
Comics in court
The CBLDF is active in multiple cases with a direct impact on comics and the rights of the comics community. In October, we won a major victory in Texas, where a federal court ruled in favor of a permanent injunction against a law that would impose mandatory ratings on books used in the state’s schools – and, of course, require many books to be removed. The state government has, of course, appealed this ruling, so look for more updates this year.
We also involved in matters involving actual or threatened arrests of retailers and readers. An issue of particular importance: the expansion of what type of material is alleged to be harmful to minors, which could affect countless books aimed at young adults and above.
New anti-comics legislation
In 2025 we fought a series of battles against proposed laws designed to target graphic novels and manga. There were some significant victories – for example, a proposal to allow retailers to be sued for selling a comic that someone finds objectionable did *not* pass – but even where a problematic bill becomes law, we help as much as possible to reduce the potential harm.
As state legislatures return to work, we’re already seeing a new wave of bills that would not only restrict access to comics, but would also make it easier to put people in jail for selling, creating, and even reading them. And make no mistake, comics really are the main target, as evidenced by attempts to remove longstanding constitutional safeguards for “visual depictions.”
We track bills nationwide as they are introduced, but if you learn of legislation that could affect comics, please reach out and let us know!
The new Comics Codes
As comics fans know all too well, censorship is not limited to laws and prosecution. Arguably the most notorious act of comics censorship in the 20th century was the creation of the Comics Code, a set of rules for acceptable content that, as an industry standard, was immune from First Amendment protections for free speech.
The new Comics Codes are digital. From the terms and conditions on social media sites to the algorithms that gatekeep everything we put online, we’re now living in a world where platform censorship is as much a threat to comics as any law a government might enact.
The CBLDF has been working to counter these cutting-edge forms of censorship as well, from restoring a comics crowdfunding project to defending manga from debanking. Based on what we have already seen in recent weeks, this is an issue whose importance will only continue to grow.
Join Us!
All of us at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund are truly grateful for your help in the fight to protect comics and the legal rights of the comics community!
To keep up to date with the latest developments, you can find us on social media @cbldf on the major platforms, and we also post updates on CBLDF.org.
To become a member, donor, or sponsor, please visit our website or reach out for more information from info@cbldf.org.
And if you hear of a case that could benefit from the CBLDF’s assistance, we definitely want to know! To report a potential case, email me (Interim Director/attorney Jeff Trexler) directly at jeff.trexler@cbldf.org.
We look forward to hearing from you and sharing more about our work soon!
–Jeff