CBLDF Protests TRUMP Campaign-Ordered Takedown of Satirical Political Cartoon

[Ubiquitous]

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, the comics industry’s voice for free
speech advocacy, is leading a coalition protesting the removal of a
cartoon satirizing President Donald Trump by Pulitzer Prize–winning
editorial cartoonist Nick Anderson from the online marketplace
Redbubble. The cartoon constitutes speech protected by the First
Amendment, and its removal misuses mechanisms designed to protect
intellectual property as a means to suppress protected speech.

On May 18, the Daily Kos reported that Redbubble removed products
featuring Anderson's cartoon "The Trump Cult," based on meritless
allegations of trademark infringement from Donald J. Trump for
President, Inc, citing the use of characters wearing MAGA hats. The
Trump Campaign has misused Redbubble's reporting mechanism to suppress
political expression in the form of parody, critique, and satire
protected by the First Amendment.

CBLDF and coalition partners Association of American Editorial
Cartoonists, American Library Association, Office For Intellectual
Freedom, The Authors Guild, Freedom to Read Foundation, National
Coalition Against Censorship, and PEN America have issued a letter
calling upon Redbubble to reinstate Mr. Anderson’s product listings to
affirm its commitment to its sellers’ — and its own — First Amendment
rights.

“Political campaigns have no business suppressing free expression, and
that’s precisely what’s happening here,” says CBLDF Executive Director
Charles Brownstein. “The President’s re-election campaign is out of
bounds by misusing tools designed to protect intellectual property
rights as a means for censoring legitimate political comment. The First
Amendment protects Mr. Anderson, Redbubble, and any other merchant
providing a platform to publish parody, critique and satire of public
officials. We strongly urge Redbubble to reinstate Mr. Anderson’s
work.”

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund provides legal and educational resources
to protect the First Amendment rights of the comics field and serve its
community. Throughout the Covid crisis, CBLDF has developed essential
resources to help comics businesses and educators, including government
aid analysis, retailer trainings, and remote learning tools. The
organization’s resources support the understanding and protection of
First Amendment rights, including free legal aid and advice on issues
related to the comics medium and an ongoing education program that
includes publications, webinars, and the League of Graphic Novel
Educators, a resource designed to support the use of comics in the
classroom. To learn more about CBLDF, please visit www.cbldf.org.

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Every American should want President Trump and his administration to handle
the coronavirus epidemic effectively and successfully. Those who seem eager
to see the president fail and to call every administration misstep a fiasco
risk letting their partisanship blind them to the demands not only of civic
responsibility but of basic decency.