| Throughout its existence, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has carried out its mission to protect free speech in comics through the generous support of fans and professionals alike. At conventions, through benefit books and other fundraisers, the comics community has rallied behind the First Amendment. No media has a more enthusiastic base of support than comics, and the CBLDF is proud to play a part in protecting this vital American art form.
However, the fight against censorship is a costly business. While conventions and special premiums provide wonderful opportunities to raise funds and awareness, they do not provide the steady, predictable funding that the CBLDF needs in order to deliver the professional level of service that the industry deserves. Sister organizations like the National Coalition Against Censorship or trade groups like the American Bookseller's Foundation for Free Expression rely on membership programs to finance the bulk of their work.
The Fund believes that everyone in the comics community has a vital interest in preserving the medium’s ability to grow. Everybody knows about the outstanding efforts of Dave Sim, Neil Gaiman, Brian Pulido, and others who have leant their time and celebrity to the CBLDF. But the simple fact is that if just a fraction of the people reading this joined the CBLDF for $25 a year, the Fund's membership program will continue to have as great an impact as any single donation the CBLDF has ever received.
The CBLDF successfully launched its Membership Program in 1999. CBLDF Board Member Frank Miller spearheaded the Fund's inaugural membership campaign and provided the artwork for the 1999 CBLDF Member Card. The card fits in a wallet and also attaches easily to most convention badges, allowing members to proclaim their support of the Fund's mission at industry gatherings. The Member Card also provides special access to CBLDF events across the country. The 2009 member card features an image from Mark Millar and john Romita Jr.'s Kick-Ass by artist John Romita Jr..
Of course, the number one benefit of membership is peace of mind. You'll know that there's someone at the other end of the phone when a retailer gets busted or an artist is brought up on charges. Together we stand, divided we fall. Become a member of the CBLDF and help preserve comics as a vital medium for the next century.
** If you choose not to have your membership renew automatically and pay with PayPal you will receive an email from PayPal notifying you of the subscription's (Auto Renewing Membership) cancellation. Unfortunately, due to how PayPal configures their system we must manually cancel each non automatically renewing membership and the email notification is unavoidable. Thank you for your understanding! ** |
