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Allowing the dangerous decision to ostracize an author for refusing to include factually incorrect statements about Israel and the Jewish state will set a dangerous precedent. Don’t let it happen!
Dark Horse Comics has canceled plans to publish Holocaust scholar Dr. Rafael Medoff’s graphic novel “Cartoonists Against the Holocaust” because he refused to condemn the Jewish state, the author said.
The novel was scheduled for publication this summer.
According to Medoff and the Jewish civil rights organization StandWithUs, Craig Yoe, an imprint editor for Yoe Books, began pressing for criticism of Israel after the Oct. 7 massacre.
Yoe reportedly told Medoff that he would block publication unless the book’s introduction stated that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. He then followed up in writing, demanding that the book include text accusing Israel of “war crimes and crimes against humanity” and stating that there are “concentration camp-style prisons” in the U.S.
“There are no concentration camps in America, and it’s not a Nazi country,” Medoff, a professor of Jewish history and the founding director of the Washington-based Wyman Center for Holocaust Studies, reportedly told Yoe.
“Misusing the term ‘concentration camps’ diminishes the suffering that was experienced by the Jewish victims of the real concentration camps in the 1930s and 1940s,” Medoff said.
He described the demands to include what he considers “factually incorrect” information as “antisemitic bullying.”
The book contains 150 editorial cartoons printed in American newspapers during the 1930s and 1940s, accompanied by Medoff’s commentary on what Americans knew about the persecution and murder of European Jews while the Holocaust was taking place.
The publisher’s legal counsel claimed the decision was based solely on financial concerns and repeated scheduling delays by Yoe.
Dark Horse previously published two of Medoff’s books, “Whistleblowers” and “Cartoonists Against Racism.”
Protest Dark Horse Comics’ immoral attempt to distort Jewish history and its insistence on publishing outrageous lies about the State of Israel!
Email: dhcomics@darkhorse.com
Suggested text:
I am writing to express my outrage at your reported decision to cancel publication of Dr. Rafael Medoff’s graphic novel, Cartoonists Against the Holocaust.
According to public statements by Dr. Medoff and others involved, the project was canceled after he refused to include statements about Israel that he believes are factually inaccurate and unrelated to the subject of the book.
If accurate, such a decision represents a troubling departure from the principles of editorial independence and intellectual integrity.
A work documenting how American editorial cartoonists responded to the Holocaust should be evaluated on its historical scholarship—not on whether its author agrees to adopt political positions unrelated to the book’s subject matter.
Regardless of one’s views on current events in the Middle East, authors should not be required to endorse particular political claims as a condition of publication. Such a precedent undermines confidence in the publishing process and raises serious concerns about viewpoint discrimination.
I urge Dark Horse Comics to reverse this decision and demonstrate a commitment to publishing works based on quality and historical value rather than ideological litmus tests.
Sincerely,
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