When Andres Martinez ordered The Silver Crown by Mathilde Madden, he expected an erotic novel about werewolves. What he didn’t expect is for the book to be seized and labeled obscene by government officials. Why was the book kept from…
Category: Legal
Opposition to Proposed Revision of Japanese Child Pornography Law Grows
Last week, we reported on a proposed revision to a Japanese child pornography law that leaves many innocent people vulnerable to prosecution due to vague legal definitions that could criminalize even the most innocuous image. In response, the Japan Cartoonists…
Vague Legal Definitions Threaten Japanese Comic Readers
For the second time in four years, members of the Japanese Diet (legislature) are attempting to revise the nation’s flawed child pornography law. While initial revision proposals offered some hope that the problems with the law would be fixed, the…
Obscenity Case Files: George Carlin’s Seven Dirty Words
When George Carlin recorded an expletive-laden 12-minute monologue before a live audience in a California theatre, he probably didn’t expect it to become the basis of a key Supreme Court decision. But in 1973, the monologue was aired as part…
A Tax on Violence? Not So Fast
In a meeting with religious leaders last week, Vice President Joe Biden stated that there is “no legal reason” that the government couldn’t impose extra taxes on entertainment media that depict violence such as movies and video games. Actually, there…
Bangladeshi Cartoonist Recounts Time in Prison
In 2007, Arifur Rahman published a cartoon featuring a character called Mohammad Cat. The cartoon was published during the Islamic holy day of Ramadan, and its publication led to protests across Bangladesh. Rahman was arrested and sentenced to 6 months…
Obscenity Case Files: Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District
The case Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District is special for several reasons. First, Tinker is a landmark case that defines the constitutional rights of students in public schools. But more importantly, Tinker shows that people can make…
Disney’s Bloody Attack on The Air Pirates
What follows in an excerpt from The Pirates and the Mouse: Disney’s War Against the Counterculture (Fantagraphics 2003) by investigative journalist Bob Levin. The book describes the so-crazy-it-must-be-true story of Disney’s attack on a group of underground cartoonists who, under…
Singapore Cartoonist Arrested for Sedition
In April, Singapore cartoonist Leslie Chew was arrested by authorities for alleged racial insensitivity and sedition. Chew shares his comic, Demon-cratic Singopore, on Facebook, and his arrest was the result of a complaint filed by a private citizen who took…
New Jersey Ponders Restricting Video Games
Despite a 2011 Supreme Court decision that struck down a California law banning the sale or rental of violent video games to minors, New Jersey lawmakers are now considering similar legislation. In an apparent attempt to skirt the Supreme Court…