After reviewing each of the cartoon panels available on this website (I have not actually seen the book(s) yet), I just can't find anything too terribly different from what I used to encounter on Sesame Street and in Cheech and Chong movies when I was a kid. The backroom-in-Mexico panel didn't do much for me personally, but that's because I don't like bugs much.
The questions are: Why were the panels yanked when they'd been perfectly acceptable for a while? Why did a faculty member or two at Evergreen put heat on this project? Did they hear from students? Was it personal? Was it political? What were the fears? I think the faculty who objected should post their views here, as well as the editor who made the decision to yank the cartoons. Let's hear their stories and see what happens.
So I throw down the glove. Let's put the money where the ol' mouth is. People usually have good reasons for what they do. Let's hear them. If no one involved will come forward and talk about it, then Evergreen students and alumni need to wake up and find out what the hell is going on.
People who engage in true censorship have agendas, embrace silence, and hide behind power. They also can't be trusted. I have more faith in the Evergreen community than that.
Beth Myhr, Class of '88 E:mail: BMyhr@aol.com