The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and partner organizations in the Kids Right to Read Project today sent a letter to Enfield School District Superintendent Dr. Jeffrey Schumann addressing concerns over the removal of Matthew Loux’s graphic novel SideScrollers from…
Category: Legal
CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein Speaks to the Ban of SideScrollers
CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein took a guest spot at ICv2’s Talk Back, writing an article about the recent removal of Matthew Loux’s SideScrollers from a school’s summer reading list. The video game-themed graphic was removed from a Connecticut school…
Indian Cartoonist Aseem Trivedi Released on Bail After Arrest on Sedition Charges
Cartoonist Aseem Trivedi was arrested on sedition charges stemming from his cartoons, which criticize and expose corruption in India’s government. His arrest sparked protests from supporters, leading the government to promise a review of the charges against Trivedi. Though bail was granted,…
Welcome to the New CBLDF.org!
Today the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is proud to unveil the new and radically improved CBLDF.org! With a daily news blog and a rich and growing Resources section, we strive to make CBLDF.org your best tool for information about…
Audio Of 1954 Juvenile Delinquency Hearings Resurfaces
By Joe Izenman The 1954 Senate Subcommittee hearings examining the possible relationship between comics and juvenile delinquency remain the most significant moment in the history of comic book censorship. Centered on the testimony of Dr. Fredric Wertham, author of Seduction…
Junior High School Teacher Fired for Students’ Political Cartoons
by Mark Bousquet An assignment asking junior high school students to create a political cartoon has resulted in the teacher being fired. Robert Duncan, a teacher at Boyet Junior High School in Slidell, Louisiana was fired earlier this month after…
Senate to Consider Bill Designed to Protect Journalists and ISPs from SLAPP Lawsuits
A Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, better known as a SLAPP lawsuit, is a legal action initiated by a party with the primary purpose of causing its opponent to succumb to the pressures of litigation. Often times, the party filing…
Facebook and ACLU Challenge the Ruling That “Likes” Are Not Free Speech
What if “liking” a page on Facebook could cost you your job?
A judge in Virginia ruled last spring that Facebook “likes” are not protected under the First Amendment. According to U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson, “merely ‘liking’ a Facebook page is insufficient speech to merit constitutional protection.”
South African Scuffle Over Controversial Portrait Spurs Debate, Censorship
How far should newspaper editorial go to protect their free speech in the face of business-crippling boycott? What dangerous precedents are set by self-censorship? Ferial Haffajee, editor of the South African City Press, faced these concerns at their most difficult…
Playwright Stops Production of THREE’S COMPANY Parody Over Copyright Claim
According to reports from The New York Times and Playbill.com, lawyers representing DLT Enterprises — the company that owns the copyright to the television series Three’s Company — have sent playwright David Adjmi a letter demanding he cease putting on…