The Cartoonist Cooperative is continually looking for ways that we, as cartoonists, can give back to the community of comics and to the world at large. Whether this is monetary awards, open letters, or otherwise – we want to help. Our initiatives, active and archived, are listed below.
Want to help us start a new campaign or program for cartoonists? Join us!
Want to learn more about us? Visit the about page!
ONGOING
e-SIMs For Gaza
The Connecting Gaza campaign supplies e-SIMs to people on the ground in Gaza, allowing them to circumvent internet disruption/blackout during the siege and continue connecting with the wider internet.
Artists from the Cooperative are offering art in exchange of the value of the donated e-SIMs.
ANNUAL
The Minicomic Awards
Beginning in 2022, The Minicomic Awards is an annual virtual showcase founded by cartoonists Leslie Hung and Sloane Leong that spotlights the unique, challenging, and under-recognized work in this short form medium. Submissions open from January 1st to February 1st.
The Comics Worker Survey
What did clients and publishers pay us this past year? What do comics workers need to survive? Our annual survey covers this and more.
STATEMENTS
Where We Stand on AI
The usage of generate algorithms has always been frowned upon by the cooperative- this is evident in our membership guidelines. The co-op’s founders, our Actions Committee, and multiple members came together to draft an in-depth statement on our specific stance as comics workers.
The Cartoonist Cooperative Condemns
Scholastic’s Support for Censoring
Diverse Authors and Stories
In October of 2023, Scholastic announced they would be separating some books with LGBTQ themes and discussions of race into a ‘special’ book fair collection which schools could opt into- or out of. As creators who frequently work with Scholastic, members had a lot to say on the issue. Scholastic has since reversed the decision.
#ComicsBrokeMe Co-op
Public Statement
In June of 2023 the #comicsbrokeme hashtag went viral on social media, exposing some of the nightmares of working our industry. This discussion was prompted by the sudden passing of artist Ian McGinty, who was 38 at the time of his death, and started by Shivana Sookdeo on Twitter.
