“Print it the way I draw it, or I quit.”

“Print it the way I draw it, or I quit.” Charles Schulz issued this ultimatum to his syndicate and newspaper editors after they hesitated to publish a comic strip featuring an integrated classroom.

Seeing Franklin sit in front of Peppermint Patty in class might not seem groundbreaking to today’s readers. However, when Schulz introduced Franklin to Peanuts in July 1968, he was making a bold statement and breaking new ground.

This original Peanuts comic strip was first published on September 10, 1975.See more original Peanuts art in the exhibition, “It’s Time for School, Charlie Brown!”: schulzmuseum.org/its-time-for-school