Let's face it--censorship, no matter what the purpose or intentions behind it, sucks. Bigtime. Sometimes, censorship means that books you were looking forward to won't be published--and sometimes, censorship means you can't even read a dictionary. (Yes, dictionaries have been banned.) Censorship is something that gets out of control, for the worse and in a hurry. Did/Does your high school library have _Huckleberry Finn_ on its shelf? If not, where is it now? Who took it away and why? Do you really know the politics that are going on behind what you read?

I got email earlier this year that this page "encourages pornography" from some anonymous wacko on AOL, who had just completely missed my point. I am not "encouraging" pornography; I am saying that's it's ok to enjoy it. There is a huge difference right there. If I were encouraging pornography, I would have tacked up a few pictures of naked women and children invovled in various sexual acts. I think that sometimes we censor stuff we're scared of; that the pictures that some pornography presents to us remind us of some deeper and darker part of our souls which we would rather not confront. I'm just saying that we shouldn't deny this part of ourselves; that by censoring some material, we ultimate censor our won thoughts and desires.

And let's disspell one more myth--just because we are not censoring pornographic comics does NOT mean that we are going to run out into the streets and distribute them to small children and old ladies. Goddess forbid. "Smut" comics and internet pages are for adults only, and by this I think that small children shouldn't have access to them. But this doesn't mean that other people should not. Comics, graphic novels, and web pages are things that should be enjoyed on an individual basis. They also have a rich history--everyone read comics when they were kids, didn't they? And doesn't it tell you something when the San Diego Comic Convention is the second-largest Convention in the Western hemisphere? People read this stuff--it's a viable art form, and it can be used in many ways. Graphic novels are not just there to make you laugh-some of them are actually written to make you _think_. People appreciate this and want more.

So, what to do about this? We can't just let censors walk all over us. Well, we're not. Check out these sites below, read as much as you can, and think about a world where what you read, see, and think about is regulated... Now, if that doesn't work, nothing will.

Links!

The Comic Book Legel Defense Fund page was the inspiration for my work on this page. They raise funds for court cases brought against comics writers, publishers, and artists. A highly worthwhile site.

The online free-speech compaign is another important place to begin with, too.

Questions? Comments? Email me. Back to Katherine's homepage.