Category: Fundraising

comiXology Joins CBLDF As A Corporate Member

by  •  • Comments Off on comiXology Joins CBLDF As A Corporate Member

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) announced today that comiXology — the world’s largest digital comics platform with over 60 million downloads to date — has become the organization’s newest Corporate Member. ComiXology joins industry leaders Dark Horse, DC Entertainment, Diamond Comic Distributors, Image Comics, Legendary Comics, Random House, and Threadless as Corporate Members supporting the CBLDF’s important work of protecting the First Amendment rights of the comics art form and its community of retailers, creators, publishers, librarians, and readers.

“There is no time like the present to support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund,” said comiXology co-founder and CEO David Steinberger. “With freedom of speech being encroached upon at every corner, especially as new digital content platforms arise, comiXology is happy to show our commitment to free speech and the comics industry with this donation. If you have yet to become a member and are a comic book fan, please do so today.”

“We’re grateful that comiXology is taking this leadership position in supporting the CBLDF’s important work,” says CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein. “We have already seen prosecutions resulting from comics delivered in the digital realm, and those prosecutions are still on the rise. The CBLDF maintains an active program of fighting back when those cases occur, and works hard to challenge unconstitutional laws that would restrict the rights of comics in this new environment. We’re gratified that comiXology recognizes the importance of our work in this area and are putting their financial support behind us.”

Recently, the CBLDF helped fund and guide the successful defense in R. v. Matheson, a case that involved a comic book fan who faced criminal charges in Canada relating to comic books on his computer. The total legal costs of this case exceeded $75,000. After taking the case last summer, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund contributed $20,000 to the defense and also participated in shaping the defense, including recruiting expert testimony for the trial. The CBLDF is currently seeking funds to help pay off the $45,000 debt the defendant incurred as a result of his case, and to create new tools to prevent future cases.

To make a contribution to these important efforts, please visit www.cbldf.org.

Read more →

Support CBLDF on FCBD!

by  •  • Comments Off on Support CBLDF on FCBD!

Free Comic Book Day 2012 is this Saturday, May 5, and folks are ready to head to their favorite local comic shop to pick up a spectacular assortment of free comics! Among the offerings for this year’s FCBD: CBLDF and BOOM! Town’s The Censored Howard Cruse, a sneak peek of The Other Sides of Howard Cruse. ComicBooked.com is running a preview of this year’s books and took a moment to describe The Censored Howard Cruse. Click through for their bullet review.

4 Color Fantasies in Rancho Cucamonga, California (7172 Archibald Avenue), is upping the ante with their Fanboys vs. Zombies dunk tank! For $1 a throw, fanboys can have a go at dunking zombies, with proceeds benefiting CBLDF’s important First Amendment work. Store manager Chris Brady tells us that fanboys will get to make their throws using Thor’s hammer (a foam version, that is)! Brady expects 2,500 comics fans for a plethora of signings and events to celebrate FCBD. You can get all the details here.

Read more →

CBLDF Hosts Member Appreciation Signings & More at Stumptown Comics Fest!

by  •  • Comments Off on CBLDF Hosts Member Appreciation Signings & More at Stumptown Comics Fest!

This weekend, CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein will represent the organization at the Stumptown Comics Festival, where we’ll have signings from Craig Thompson, Dan Piraro, and Ron Randall, as well as a huge array of signed comics and graphic novels that you can get for making a donation in support of our important work! Stumptown is one of the great American independent comics festivals. In addition to the action on the convention floor, the entire Portland comics community goes all out hosting a wide variety of parties, art exhibits and special events showcasing the city’s unique comics culture. Read on for the full scoop on CBLDF’s activities and all the special events happening at the show!

Read more →

CBLDF Attends 10th Anniversary MoCCA Fest This Weekend!

by  •  • Comments Off on CBLDF Attends 10th Anniversary MoCCA Fest This Weekend!

This weekend, CBLDF Executive Director Alex Cox will be joining comics creators, publishers, and fans in New York City for MoCCA Fest 2012, the 10th anniversary of the festival that benefits the work of the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art. Photographer Seth Kushner, writer Christopher Irving, and artists Dean Haspiel and Peter Kuper will also be on hand to sign exclusive prints inspired by Kushner and Irving’s book, Leaping Tall Buildings. The sale of these prints benefits CBLDF’s important First Amendment work.

Get all the details after the jump!

Read more →

LA Times Festival of Books Tells A Success Story For CBLDF!

by  •  • Comments Off on LA Times Festival of Books Tells A Success Story For CBLDF!


Last weekend, Deputy Director Alex Cox traveled to Los Angeles to represent the CBLDF at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. It was a terrific weekend, featuring signings by Sam Humphries (left) and Lev Grossman. The CBLDF raised $3,000 for our important work protecting free speech, and got a glance of a small sliver of what the LA comics scene has to offer. Read on for Alex’s adventures after the jump!

Read more →

Comics-On Tees Submissions Online, Challenge Ends Soon!

by  •  • Comments Off on Comics-On Tees Submissions Online, Challenge Ends Soon!

Threadless and CBLDF announced the Comics-On Tees vol. 6 Design Challenge at C2E2, and submissions have started rolling in! Artists are creating their vision of Neil Gaiman’s original script, The Day the Saucers Came, and the winner of the contest will have their work printed on the first of four Comics-On Tees shirts, alongside Ben Templesmith (Fell, 30 Days of Night), Brandon Graham (Prophet, King City), and John Cassaday (Captain America, Planetary).

Threadless’s community of 1.8 million members will pick the final design, and the chosen shirt will be revealed at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Submissions are open until May 4, 2012, and fans can follow the submissions here. When the four-part series is released, 25% of the proceeds will benefit CBLDF’s important First Amendment work.

Artists: the challenge ends soon, so get to work on your submissions! For more details on the contest, visit the Threadless Atrium here. For more from CBLDF about the contest, check out this article.

Read more →

CBLDF Heads to LA for the Festival of Books!

by  •  • Comments Off on CBLDF Heads to LA for the Festival of Books!

CBLDF Deputy Director Alex Cox is headed to the West Coast this weekend for the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, joining a cadre of authors and book lovers for the annual celebration of the printed word! If you live in the area, head over the University of Southern California campus this weekend for sunshine and literature!

Come by booth #856 to show your support for CBLDF and mingle with fellow supporters of Free Speech. CBLDF will have a vast array of signed premiums on hand for readers of all ages. We’ll have some of the world’s greatest comics, including Maus, Watchmen, Sandman, The Walking Dead, and Understanding Comics, all signed by their creators to support the fight for Free Speech! And that’s just the beginning! You’ll also be able to pick up your own “I Read Banned Comics” t-shirt and other apparel, tote bags, button sets, and more.

CBLDF is also delighted to have some amazing creators signing at booth #856. On Saturday, at 2:00 p.m, you’ll be able to get autographs from Sam Humphries, the writer behind the cult hit Our Love Is Real and Fraggle Rock and The Ultimates. On noon on Sunday, we’ll be joined by Lev Grossman, the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Magicians and The Magician King!

The weather forecasts are sunny for this weekend’s Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, so please join CBLDF at booth #856 this weekend to support Free Speech and celebrate books!

Read more →

Chicago Shows Huge Support At C2E2!

by  •  • Comments Off on Chicago Shows Huge Support At C2E2!

Last weekend the CBLDF team was at C2E2 in Chicago where we launched a huge t-shirt project with Threadless, delivered a presentation on the history of comics censorship, signed up over 30 new members, and raised more than $7,300 for our important work. CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein recaps the festivities after the jump!

Read more →

Threadless Design Challenge Opens Submissions to Comics-On Tees Vol. 6 by Neil Gaiman!

by  •  • Comments Off on Threadless Design Challenge Opens Submissions to Comics-On Tees Vol. 6 by Neil Gaiman!

Threadless kicked off the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) last night with a benefit party for Comic Book Legal Defense Fund at Threadless Headquarters where a new fundraising effort for the non-profit organization was announced. In July, Threadless will launch Comics-On Tees Vol. 6, a series of four tees based on the poem The Day the Saucers Came, written by bestselling author and CBLDF board member Neil Gaiman. Artists have a chance to design the first tee in the four-part series, and 25% of the proceeds from the chosen design will benefit CBLDF.

Submissions for the first The Day the Saucers Came t-shirt will be scored by the Threadless community, and its 1.8 million community members will help pick the final chosen design. Designs can be submitted through Threadless, and the chosen shirt will be revealed at Comic-Con International in San Diego. The other three tees in the series will feature art from John Cassaday (Planetary, Astonishing X-Men), Ben Templesmith (Fell, 30 Days of Night), and Brandon Graham (King City, Prophet). To submit designs & learn more about this project please visit: http://atrium.threadless.com/cbldf/

Read more →

CBLDF Blows Into The Windy City For C2E2!

by  •  • Comments Off on CBLDF Blows Into The Windy City For C2E2!

This weekend the CBLDF takes to the road once more for C2E2 and the Diamond Retailer Summit in Chicago! The Fund has great rewards planned for card-carrying CBLDF Members, including a big open bar welcome bash hosted by CBLDF Corporate Member THREADLESS on Friday night and copies of the CBLDF Exclusive edition of Glory #23 signed by Joe Keatinge or Liberty Annual 2011 signed by Frank Quitely both COMPLETELY FREE for card-carrying CBLDF members. Beyond these membership thank you’s, we’re also delivering a presentation on the history of comics censorship on Sunday morning, and have a booth loaded with amazing signed books, prints and more to support our important First Amendment legal work! Read on for full details about what CBLDF has in store for you in Chicago!

Read more →