Contributions to CBLDF made during this campaign will help the CBLDF in the following ways:

Legal Action

This September, the CBLDF must contribute the first installment of the $150,000 in legal fees needed to defend Brandon X, an American citizen facing a minimum sentence of one year in Canadian prison and registration as a sex offender because Canada Customs alleges that Japanese horror and fantasy comics on Brandon’s laptop are child pornography. His case is important because it raises important precedent questions about the artistic merit of comics and the rights of readers and artists traveling with comics on their electronic devices. The CBLDF needs your help to pay the lawyers defending this case because we seek to establish a precedent that protects comics in Canada and influences courts in the United States.

Beyond Brandon’s case, the CBLDF needs your help to ensure we are able to continue our other important program services. Your membership dollars will pay for our membership in Media Coalition, which helps us track and fight unconstitutional legislation. You will also ensure we have the resources we need to pay our monthly retainer for routine First Amendment legal work.

Education

The CBLDF continues to assist librarians and retailers when comics and graphic novels are challenged. Often this happens on a case-by-case basis, during which CBLDF staff gather defense materials for each individual incident. We currently seek funds to develop more substantial preventive tools, including joining an important anti-censorship coalition that protects the right to read.

Please visit www.cbldf.org to learn about all of the rewards offered in this important campaign, and to Be Counted by joining the Fund!

ARTISTS TO THE RESCUE, WAVE II — ORIGINAL ART AUCTIONS BENEFIT CBLDF!

With the Canada Customs Case drawing closer, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund continues its vital fundraising auctions with help from artists across the wide spectrum of the comic book industry. In an effort to raise over $100,000 by the end of October, artist supporters and Fund members have truly stepped up and provided benefit material ranging from pin-ups to original pages to covers, all in support of defending a comic fan from the threat of prison and hopefully setting a precedent that allows creators, retailers, publishers, fans alike to travel freely across the border without fear of persecution or harassment.

Artists such as Tony Harris, Camilla d’Errico, Cully Hamner, and Bernie Wrightson have all donated art, generating over $2,000 in one week. With many more cartoonists generously donating original works, the Artists to the Rescue benefit campaign continues into Fall with an exciting new round of gorgeous pieces of comic book art.

The current round of auctions includes a wide variety of amazing works, most notably several incredible pieces from the private collection of Stuart and Kathryn Immonen. This set includes a page from the classic Epic Comics adaptation of FAFHRD AND THE GREY MOUSER by modern master Mike Mignola, as inked by the late Al Williamson. Also included is a Mignola character study of Dr. Strange’s companion Wong, from the Marvel Graphic Novel classic DOCTOR STRANGE & DOCTOR DOOM: TRIUMPH AND TORMENT. These pieces represent a portion of the extremely generous donation from the Immonen’s collection, with more to be auctioned in the coming weeks!