On January 29, 2026, PEN America issued a statement on the abrupt cancellation of performances in New York and Los Angeles by Israeli comedian Guy Hochman, who has been accused by advocacy organizations of incitement to genocide in Gaza. On further consideration, PEN America has decided to withdraw this statement. We remain committed to open and respectful dialogue about the divisions that arise in the course of defending free expression.
Update 2/19:
PEN America withdrew its statement based on a judgment about whether it appropriately addressed the specific dynamics of the situation, including the rights and responsibilities of private venues and the fact that the Los Angeles venue had already reversed course and offered to reschedule the show. We continue to oppose ideological litmus tests as conditions for artistic performance. This decision had nothing to do with Hochman’s identity.
Update 2/23 shared with the New York Times via Letter to the Editor:
To the Editor:
Re “Writers Against Free Expression,” by James Kirchick (Opinion guest essay, Feb. 19):
PEN America rejects the claims that its decision to withdraw a Jan. 29 statement on the cancellation of performances by an Israeli comedian reflects capitulation to a pressure campaign or signals a turn away from the organization’s mission to uphold free expression.
Our original statement failed to fully account for relevant facts about how and why the venues made their decisions to cancel the comedian’s shows. It did not sufficiently address the rights of private venues in making curatorial decisions vis-à-vis the expressive interests of the performer. Additionally, publishing the statement after the Los Angeles venue had already reversed course and offered to reschedule the event was inconsistent with our past practice.
We regret that our initial failure to offer a fuller explanation for the withdrawal of the statement allowed for misinterpretation, including that we are retreating from our principles or that the decision was based on the comedian’s identity. Neither is true.
Last year, PEN America issued nearly 250 press statements. But statements are not all we do. We are leading the fight against book bans, mobilizing resistance to government attacks on academic freedom and supporting writers facing safety threats.
We have defended Jewish and Israeli as well as Palestinian writers and academics who’ve been targeted and canceled. We continue to oppose ideological litmus tests as conditions for artistic performance. We know that any given statement may be taken out of context and met with charges of bias, but we refuse to be silenced by that risk. We must therefore hold ourselves to the highest possible standards.