Nary a tear was shed when the Comics Code Authority sputtered out earlier this year following its thorough abandonment by the publishing industry. Depending on your leanings, the CCA was either a necessary evil that "saved" comics from people freaked out over horror content in the '50s or a manifestation of creative repression that quashed progress in the medium for more than 60 years (or a little of both). For the First Amendment advocates at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, the CCA was more the latter, making their acquisition of the official CCA seal all the sweeter. Instead of gracing comic book covers, the CBLDF will now license the seal to adorn merchandise like t-shirts and mugs, making ironic money from its every use.From the CBLDF's official press release:

"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."

As noted by the CBLDF, retailers like Graphitti Designs already have CCA merch in stock. You can check out Graphitti's black and white tee designs below:

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