(JTA) — The Polish publisher of a French comic book about Holocaust hero Irena Sendler has been sanctioned by the Warsaw City Council for distributing comic books that mock Polish nationalists at a city book fair which it co-sponsored.
Also distributed at the Timof Comics booth was a free comic “Poland, the champion of Poland,” by Tomasz Lesniak and Rafal Skarzycki, who created drawings ridiculing nationalism, racism and anti-Semitism. Since the Festival was co-financed by the city council, nationalist organizations complained to city officials that such comics should not appear at the event because it is insulting to the groups. On Thursday, the city office published a statement that said, “After reviewing the comic we explicitly declare that we do not accept its content.” The council also said it would suspend the city’s subsidy for the Festival for the next three years, withholding about $44,500.