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A hope on this Freedom Eve
In another recent correspondence with Clifford Meth, I asked him for a few words on the need for comics creators to come together to form a guild in light of the conditions we remain under as free lance contractors with no supporting organization which binds us. Clifford's response didn't tarry: Frankly, Michael, I never quite understood why there wasn't already a comics guild or a union or collective of some sort. My understanding was that a movement in that direction was germinated more than three decades ago but, apparently, it never received the nurturing of enough rank and file creators to amount to a hill of beans. A guild, however, would afford members the strength of collective bargaining necessary to assure safer futures for the vast majority of comics creators who, let's face it, will never receive the star power necessary to sustain lifelong careers in the field. I believe the best way to set this in motion would be with a looser - yet meticulously organized - group of creators that share a central cause and are willing to put their shoulders to the grindstone. The group should elect a smaller team of spokesmen and offer benefits to potential members, such as group-rate medical insurance and shared resources (lawyers, accountants, and so forth). It wouldn't take that many folks to get this going. 
Clifford is correct on all counts. In the spring of 1978, a concerted effort was put forth by Neal Adams to organize creators and declare the formation of the guild. The image above is from a work which was produced then and can be seen here. I was one of the writers of a letter which was intended for distribution in the community and pleaded the case to the creators . It soon became evident, however, that we did not have the support of enough members in order to continue with the effort which came to a halt soon afterwards. There was apparently another such effort to form a similar union in the Latter 1980's, The Comic Book Professionals' Association, headed by Kurt Busiek, Len Wein and Heidi MacDonald, amongst others. This effort also came to an untimely halt due to lack of interest from the creators' community. Futility and complacency paralyze our ability to improve our lot in the world. I've received some very encouraging correspondences from small press and independent creators supporting The Comic Book Creators' Guild since the launch of its web site, but we need a better show from mainstream professionals in order to bring something together. On this eve of the Passover tradition of freedom in the Jewish world, I'll refrain from harsh criticism of the phenomenon, knowing that when the time comes, comic book creators will rise to the occasion and find a way to help bring creative and economic freedom for themselves and their community. PostScript: Comics storyteller, artist, friend and colleague, Mike Pascale of Bru-Hed fame for Schism Comics commented in this article on an earlier attempt to form the guild in the 1960's and it's perhaps fitting that we should have the comment here up front with the article:
Hi, Michael-- I think the first attempt was in the 1960s by Arnold Drake and others, which had much more severe consequences (the older writers being nearly blacklisted, which ironically paved the way for "new blood" such as Len Wein and Marv Wolfman, beginning the first wave of "fan-to-pro" that continues to this day). I read about this in CBA and various interviews with those who were there at the time. I know Neal is aware of it as well. As for Danny's question, I think a lot has to do with the circumstances under which freelancers work. (Living as I sadly do in the Motor City, headquarters of the UAW, one can't help but be exposed to unions, pro and con.) Unlike assembly-line workers and such, most comic folks cannot simply "walk" off their jobs in unified protest. A), There is no shortage of people wanting work who would be willing and able to take their places, and B) given the economic nature of their profession (and common check-to-check existence), they can't afford to drop work, especially a steady book.(I constantly go from "Crap, I'm too busy and can't handle it all" to "Crap, I haven't worked in weeks and I think the world forgot about me!" It was much worse before I married someone with a "real" job.) Now if "top" folks like Alex Ross, Geoff Johns, Brian Bendis, and so on all concentrated their efforts and threatened to "walk", I'm sure the companies would take notice and negotiate something. But ironically, those with the largest impact are the ones with the least need to fight and have the most satisfaction, so they have no emprical reason to do such a thing. On the bright side, as Earl Nightingale pointed out, there is and always will be room for the top five percent of people in any field. All we have to do as creators is be the best we can and be part of the top of the pyramid. (Easier said than done, but that's half the fun!) BTW, a happy and joyous Passover to you and yours. Best, Mike Thanks, Mike, for the good info and insight. Hope all's well in th Motor City, my hometown as well which I also hope to visit again this summer. Wishing a hearty freedom celebration for all.
Permalink Posted: 11:52 PM EST
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