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"Alison Bechdel has responded to the latest controversy surrounding Fun Home. The cartoonist released a statement through publisher HMH regarding the threats of funding cuts the College of Charleston has received since featuring her seminal autobiographical graphic novel on its recommended reading list.  The South Carolina House Ways and Means committee has threatened a cut of $52,000 (\u00C2\u00A331,000) to the university&amp;#039;s funding over Fun Home, which deals with Bechdel&amp;#039;s late father&amp;#039;s latent homosexuality and her own coming out. &amp;quot;I&amp;#039;m very grateful to the people who taught my book at the College of Charleston,&amp;quot; she told Publishers Weekly. &amp;quot;It was brave of them to do that given the conservative pressures they&amp;#039;re apparently under. I made a visit to the school last fall for which they also took some flak, but to their great credit they didn&amp;#039;t back down.  &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s sad and absurd that the College of Charleston is facing a funding cut for teaching my book - a book which is after all about the toll that this sort of small-mindedness takes on people&amp;#039;s lives.&amp;quot; The funding cut is yet to be finalised, with a decision due on March 10. Rep Garry Smith said in a previous interview that &amp;quot;one of the things I learned over the years is that if you want to make a point, you have to make it hurt&amp;quot;. &amp;quot;I understand academic freedom, but this is not academic freedom,&amp;quot; he claimed. &amp;quot;This was about promoting one side with no academic debate involved.&amp;quot; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/comics/news/a554161/alison-bechdel-responds-to-fun-home-university-controversy/>