A film, a comic, a gay bookstore and censorship
Vancouver’s Little Sister’s keeps up its fight against Canadian bureaucrats obsessed with obscenity
PREVIEW
LITTLE SISTER'S VS. BIG BROTHER
Directed by Aerlyn Weissman
Calgary International Film Festival
Saturday, October 5.
Globe Cinema
There’s a small gay and lesbian bookstore in Vancouver that just can’t seem to stay out of the news.
For years, Little Sister’s Book and Art Emporium fought the Canadian government against censorship, claiming that the seizure of imported books by customs officers – on the grounds that the books were obscene – was unconstitutional. In 2000, the bookstore won a landmark Supreme Court case that transferred the onus for proving obscenity onto Canada Customs instead of the bookstore having to prove the opposite.
That seemed to be the end of the story, but then two things happened: Canadian filmmaker Aerlyn Weissman made a documentary about the court case – the film itself became mired in a controversy during the Vancouver gay and lesbian film festival – and Canada Customs continued seizing Little Sister’s books.
The result has been more accusations of censorship, the publication of two books to raise money for a new Little Sister’s court battle, and a whole lot of talk about gay sex.
Weissman’s film Little Sister’s vs. Big Brother is playing as part of the Calgary International Film Festival, but it almost never made it to screen in August when it was scheduled to open the 14th Queer Film and Video Festival in Vancouver. Just prior to the festival’s opening on August 8, members of British Columbia’s Film Classification Office threatened to fine the theatre planning to screen the film, stating that it wasn't licensed to exhibit so-called adult films. Although the film was eventually shown, festival director Drew Dennis says she is still meeting with provincial officials to work out the convoluted affair.
"They were somewhat apologetic, and did own up to the fact that their office did make mistakes... but was it a case of someone making a mistake or was it a clear case of discrimination?" Dennis says. "We’re not really satisfied."
Little Sister’s bookstore, meanwhile, has its own problems to deal with.
The owners are again taking the government to court, alleging that nothing has changed at the border despite their court victory. More of their books have been seized, specifically two issues of Meatmen, an anthology of gay male comics.
To help raise money for the court battle, Arsenal Pulp Press recently released What’s Wrong: Graphic Interpretations Against Censorship, a collection of sexually explicit comic art responding to the Little Sister’s mêlée. The book includes work from comic artists as diverse as Ho Che Anderson – yes, the same man who received rave reviews for his comic biography of Martin Luther King Jr. in the mid-90s – and Tom of Finland, whose work helped shape gay culture for decades before his death in 1991.
The book features some hilarious interpretations of censorship by border bureaucrats – Micheal Em’s genital-removing machine is among the highlights – and, as the name implies, some graphic comic erotica.
Later this year, a companion book called What’s Right: Graphic Interpretations Against Censorship will also be released, featuring, among others, syndicated comics giants Lynn Johnson of For Better or Worse fame, and Bizarro’s Dan Piraro. The book promises to be a little more tame, but still raises the fundamental questions behind all of Little Sister’s controversies – namely, the nature of obscenity and the rights of the government to censor art.
Such controversies have larger implications. Dennis, for example, says even though Little Sister’s vs. Big Brother made it to the screen at the Vancouver festival, she worries about the other festivals shying away from such films in the future.
"I think, yes, it can have a direct input on programming. It can have an impact on showing films," she says. "Some films, because of the added hassle, may not make it to the screen."
Dennis pointed out another aspect about the controversy, which was, essentially, that a film about censorship was nearly censored:
"I think the irony of it all is pretty rich," she says. |
