Neil Gaiman writes: "A little over a year ago I released my rarest, earliest, and hardest to find work -- books and comics -- through Humble Bundle to fund charities that do good work. People were all so generous and enthusiastic that we broke records. More importantly, they made it possible for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and for the charities supported by the Gaiman Foundation, including the CBLDF, to help make things better for people." Read the rest

Charles from the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund writes, "CBLDF is raising money to prepare for a busy 2017 this #GivingTuesday by offering exclusive Comics Are For Everybody merchandise created by Jordie Bellaire (@woahjordie) and Steven Finch (@fonografiks). Comics should be an art form that welcomes and encourages all voices and viewpoints. CBLDF's efforts to protect the First Amendment are essential in creating a climate ensuring that remains the case." Read the rest

Here's a (wonderful) turn-up for the books. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (a stellar organization) has assumed the trademark for the Comics Code Seal, once a symbol of self-censorship in the comics industry. The Comics Authority, which ran the censorship regime, folded up last year. CBLDF will be using the seal on merchandise it sells to fund its free speech work:

The Comics Code Seal comes to the CBLDF during Banned Books Week, a national celebration of the freedom to read, and just a few months following a decision in the U.S. Supreme Court where Justice Scalia cited CBLDF’s brief addressing the comics industry’s history of government scrutiny and the subsequent self-regulation the Comics Code represented. Dr. Amy Nyberg, author of Seal of Approval: The History of Comics Code has prepared a short history of the Comics Code Seal and the era of censorship it represents exclusively for CBLDF that is available now in the Resources section of cbldf.org.

CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein says, “As we reflect upon the challenges facing intellectual freedom during Banned Books Week, the Comics Code Seal is a reminder that it’s possible for an entire creative field to have those rights curtailed because of government, public, and market pressures. Fortunately, today comics are no longer constrained as they were in the days of the Code, but that’s not something we can take for granted. Banned Books Week reminds us that challenges to free speech still occur, and we must always be vigilant in fighting them.”

The CBLDF will take over licensing of products bearing the Comics Code Seal, including t-shirts, providing a modest source of income for the organization’s First Amendment legal work.

As the tenth anniversary of Transmetropolitan's final issue draws near, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has embarked on a Kickstarter project to create a limited edition hardcover featuring new illustrations from a superstar list of comics artists. The book will be used as a fundraising premium for CBLDF, which defends the free speech rights of comics creators, publishers and retailers. Artists who've been tapped for the project include:

Aaron Alexovich, Martin Ansin, Brandon Badeaux, Edmund Bagwell, Joe Benitez, Rick Berry, Nicholas Bradshaw, Dan Brereton, Evan Bryce, Stephanie Buscema, Jim Calafiore, Cliff Chiang, Katie Cook, Molly Crabapple, Camilla d'Errico, Michael Dialynas, Aaron Diaz, Kristian Donaldson, Ryan Dunlavey, Gary Erskine, Simon Fraser, Richard Friend, Dan Goldman, Cully Hamner, Matt Howarth, K Thor Jensen, Lukas Ketner, Sam Kieth, Clint Langley, Jeff Lemire, Corey Lewis, Milo Manara, John McCrea, Kevin Mellon, Moritat, Dean Motter, J O'Barr, Len O'Grady, Alberto Ponticelli, Rodney Ramos, Paul Renaud, Afua Richardson, Darick Robertson, Jimmie Robinson, James Romberger, Nei Ruffino, Tim Seeley, Liam Sharp, Alex Sheikman, Paul Sizer, Fiona Staples, Dave Taylor, Spike Trotman, Pete Venters, Matthew Weldon, Pete Woods, JK Woodward, Annie Wu, ...and many others.

Transmet is the comic that got me seriously interested in the form again in my late 20s. It's truly a seminal work, and the CBLDF is one of my favorite activist groups.

The TRANSMETROPOLITAN art book (via Super Punch)