One would think that now that we’re well into the 21st Century, censorship would no longer be a problem. However, defending graphic novels and novels against library and school challenges remains a key part of CBLDF’s mission. In the last…
Category: Education
What Is the Advisory Board? CBLDF Executive Director Explains
Last week, CBLDF announced the launch of our new Advisory Board, which will be chaired by CBLDF founder Denis Kitchen and and longtime supporter Neil Gaiman. In the wake of the announcment, The Comics Reporter‘s Tom Spurgeon reached out to…
Tales From the Code: Welcome to Government Comics
Throughout history, state and federal governments have utilized popular culture to spread their message. Given the effectiveness and popularity of sequential art, it should be no surprise that comics would be enlisted into the cause. And much like Marvel’s merry…
Santa’s Pipe Missing from New Edition of Classic Poem
Many of the traits now attributed to Santa Claus in English-speaking countries — jolliness, rotundity, eight tiny reindeer, a penchant for sleigh travel and chimney diving — have their origin in the classic poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” written…
CBLDF Establishes Advisory Board: Denis Kitchen and Neil Gaiman Named Co-Chairs
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is pleased to announce the establishment of a formal advisory board to assist the organization in advancing its mission to protect the First Amendment rights of the comics art form. The advisory board will…
CBLDF Annual Report
It’s been a spectacular year for CBLDF, with victory in the Ryan Matheson case, clearing the name of an American citizen who was arrested for the comics on his laptop; a $60,000 donation from the Gaiman Foundation to pay for…
Teaching Controversial Comics: A First-Hand Account
As we were traversing the interwebs, we came across an amazing article courtesy of The Comics Observer and educator Anastasia Betts about the use of controversial graphic novels in classrooms. What follows is the entirety of the article, reprinted here…
CBLDF Signs On Against Massachusetts Challenge
The season of book challenges and bans continues for CBLDF, the Kids’ Right to Read Project, and allied groups, which yesterday issued a letter in defense of two books targeted for removal from 9th and 10th grade classrooms in Springfield,…
The Gaiman Foundation Contributes $60,000 to CBLDF for Education Program
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is grateful to acknowledge the generosity of the Gaiman Foundation, who today contributed $60,000 to advance the organization’s growing education program. After more than a decade of service, Neil Gaiman retired from the CBLDF’s…
Know Your Comics Censorship History!
The history of comics censorship is a sordid saga of misguided censors, self-imposed silence, criminal prosecutions, and suppression of free expression that led to the obliteration of thousands of careers, more than a few publishers, and even an entire country’s…