Those of you who are or used to be obsessive comics geeks like me may recall that this past year saw the demise of the Comics Code Authority, the industry watchdog organization that for decades ensured that comic books would be mostly wholesome and that Wm. Gaines would never sell another comic book as long as he lived. The "Comics Code Authority Seal" was a sign for newstand and drugstore owners that they weren't going to have angry parents complaining about the blood and guts in their funnybooks. The point of the CCA was to be a voluntary self-censorship organization that would prevent the government from stepping in and doing the censoring instead. Which makes this story particularly delicious.
The CCA has been feeling mighty poorly these past few decades, as the industry has sort of bypassed it and parents groups are too worried about violent video games to care if Doctor Manhatten is walking around without any pants. Last January, DC Comics pulled out of the CCA, followed shortly by Archie Comics, the last member and long-time supporter of the organization.
It turned out that the board had been effectively dead since about 2009 and had been simply rubber-stamping the comics sent to them for approval. The remaining publishers still affiliated with it simply let their dues run out and stopped using the CCA seal when they did.
But what then of the familiar old "Approved by the COMICS CODE AUTHORITY" seal? Well, the news has come out today that the intellectual property rights to the seal have been bought...by the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of the First Amendment rights of the comics art form and its community of retailers, creators, publishers, librarians, and readers. It provides legal referrals, representation, advice, assistance, and education.
The CBLDF's Executive Director, Charled Brownstein says, “It’s a progressive change that the Comics Code seal, which is yesterday’s symbol of comics censorship, will now be used to raise money to protect the First Amendment challenges comics face in the future. That goal probably would have been unimaginable to the Code’s founders, who were part of a generation of comics professionals that were fleeing a witch-hunt that nearly trampled comics and any notion that they deserved any First Amendment protection.”
That this announcement is being made during Banned Books Week, is probably no coincidence.
So yes, you too will be able to buy an "Approved by the CCA" t-shirt in support of the Amendment rights of comics creators, sellers and readers.
Somewhere, Frederic Wertham's head is exploding.