Happy Giving Tuesday! Since 2012, the annual tradition of giving to nonprofits the Tuesday after Black Friday, Giving Tuesday, has been my favorite time of year.
When I was younger, I often got a conservation animal as a gift, and the annual updates on how “my” white tiger and manatee were doing were bright spots each year. It feels good to give to others and to receive the gift of giving—please, queue the altruism debate now. (As a psych nerd, I love hearing your perspectives.) This year’s Giving Tuesday, however, is not about tigers, manatees, and animal activism for me but about helping the writers, artists, and creatives who need more support in the land and time of book bans. (As an added aside, consider being a modern-day patron, of course, sans the patron benefits, by supporting a queer creator’s crowdfunding campaign).
This year, consider giving to one of the numerous nonprofits working to combat the increasing prejudice in the publishing industry. And full disclosure, I’m on the board of the organization that will be the focus of this piece, Prism Comics, an organization that has supported the LGBTQIA+ comic book community for 20 years (happy anniversary!) through queer press grants, community building, and more. Prism Comics also hosts the longest-running panel at San Diego Comic-Con, “Out in Comics,” in partnership with Andy Mangels (Star Trek – Titan, Wonder Woman ’77 Meets the Bionic Woman), which has now been running for over three decades, and it founded Southern California’s only queer comics convention, Q Con, in 2022.
Since 2003, Prism’s homo-superior-adorned booth and queer convention guide have provided a safe space where LGBTQIA+ comics creators, fans, and their allies can network and share work that speaks directly to their experiences and lives. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, all U.S. donations to Prism Comics are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law, too.
I’m very proud of the work we have done for LGBTQIA+ writers, artists, and fans in the comic book industry—work that I firmly believe is more important than ever now that 30 percent of banned books feature queer themes. I know that it’s important for these stories to reach readers, and that they change lives. My proudest moments are the people who come out to me first because of the space for authentic representation that Prism Comics has created.
However, Prism Comics depends on support from folx in the community:
Prism Comics
- Help with the costs of exhibiting at conventions.
- Provide a safe, welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ comics diversity in the face of rising book banning and discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community.
- Give LGBTQIA+ and LGBTQIA+ friendly comics creators “a place at the table” at comic conventions to share their comics and meet with readers and fans.
- Support Prism Comics’ Q Con, the only LGBTQIA+ comic convention in Southern California.
- Provide readers, educators, librarians, and families with opportunities to find a wide variety of LGBTQ+ comics and graphic novels for all ages in one location at comic conventions.
Donate to Prism Comics or check out the Prism Pop-Up Shop (proceeds also help the organization).
Other comics nonprofits to consider
Since this is Giving Tuesday, I would like to highlight some organizations other than my own. Read on for some other great ideas in the comic book space!
Mutts by Patrick McDonnell
On November 1, 1998, McDonnell published the first Shelter Stories, featuring an image of Shtinky Puddin’ praising the volunteers who took care of him and made him feel less alone in this big ‘ol world, as a way to generate support for ASPCA’s National Animal Foster Appreciation Week. Over the last two decades, the biannual feature showcasing stories of animals looking for their forever homes has become one of the more popular features of Mutts. “Some people tell me these are their favorite strips (even when they make them cry),” said McDonnell. “Many dedicated souls who work at shelters have also let me know how much they appreciate these stories.”
Mutts gives back by supporting shelters and rescue groups across the globe. In addition, Mutts is a proud member of 1% for the Planet, a global organization that ensures our planet and future generations thrive.
Pop Culture Hero Coalition
Founded by Chase Masterson and Carrie Goldman in 2013, Pop Culture Hero Coalition uses evidence-based psychology combined with stories and characters from comics, television, and film to teach real-life heroism, mental health skills, and bullying prevention. Although Pop Culture Hero’s “Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning” principles are geared toward children and teens, the SuperheroIRL prevention and treatment methods work to end oppression in all its forms. Even better, there’s a pretty poppin’ online store so you can purchase gifts for your favorite nerd(s) with your donation.
Since this is an enterainment website, I recommend the interactive mental health comic, Super Kids Comic Book and Lights, Camera … Identity: Never Alone, written and produced by Raymond Litster and illustrated by Mister Loki (and the $10.00 price tag comes with a matching donation to a participating LGBTQ+ center).
A.B.O. Comix
I can never write enough about the good work of Casper Cendre and A.B.O. Comix to match my level of enthusiasm for what the collective has brought into the lives of LGBTQIA+ prisoners. After all, art is activism. And it’s activism that heals. In speaking with me after A.B.O.’s A Queer Prisoner’s Anthology: Edition IV won the 2021 Prism Award for Best Comics Anthology, Cendre said the best way people can support queer prisoners is by engaging with them and forming a mutual support system via the non-profit’s penpal program. “The best way to learn about a situation is from the people experiencing it,” said the A.B.O. co-founder. “We always advocate that the best way to get involved is to form friendships with incarcerated people.”
ONE Archives Foundation
During the pandemic, I wrote something from the ONE Archives Foundation, an independent community partner of USC Libraries’ ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, the largest repository of LGBTQ materials in the world. That’s how I learned about this amazing organization founded in 1952 as ONE Inc., the publisher of ONE Magazine, ONE Archives Foundation is the oldest active LGBTQ organization in the United States. In 2010, ONE Archives Foundation deposited its vast collection of LGBTQ historical materials with the USC Libraries. Today, the organization is dedicated to promoting this important resource through diverse activities, including educational initiatives, fundraising, and a range of public programs.
American Library Association
This is a great option for people with few financial resources. American Library Association’s resource page on book donation programs is an informative guide on donating books and magazines, including a list of groups and organizations that accept donations and general guidelines on donating.
Want to donate to even more charities for 2023’s Giving Tuesday? Check out our guide to local charity donations!
(featured image: Kevin Alpert/Prism Comics/GivingTuesday)
