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Verity McKay | 2023 PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner
A woman pushed to the brink by the pressures of every day life in the wake of carrying around an awful secret for far too long. The awful secret… More
On anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death, PEN America calls for an end to the suppression of free thought and expression in Iran
PEN America calls upon the Iranian government to cease its continued persecution of dissident voices and to release artists, writers, and creatives sentenced to prison. More
Denouement
Catherine LaFleur was awarded the inaugural Bell Chevigny Prize for the 2023 Prison Writing Contest. Every year, hundreds of imprisoned people from around the country submit poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and… More
PEN America Criticizes U.S. Human Rights Record at the U.N. Human Rights Committee
PEN America submitted a report to the United Nations Committee on Civil and Political Rights, criticizing the human rights record of the United States on free expression, discrimination, and… More
Annabelle Ulaka | 2023 PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner
After completing a story, I show it to people who tell me what the words mean. These people are the readers. More
High School and College Students Can Learn how to Become Free Expression Advocates and Combat Book Bans at PEN America’s Online Trainings This Fall
PEN America’s flagship Free Expression Advocacy Institute returns this fall as a free, online, eight-week, educational and training program where high school and college students get certified in mastering… More
2023 PEN America Prison Writing Contest Winners Announced
Robert Pollock, program manager for the Prison and Justice Writing program, said: “The extraordinary quality of the writing and their subject matter are evident in the judges’ choices. That… More
Media Advisory: PEN America Experts on Book Bans Available, Ahead of Senate Hearing 9/12
PEN America has been at the forefront of documenting and defending against the unprecedented rise of school book bans nationwide. Texas, Florida and Missouri lead with the most books… More
Jo Saleska | 2023 PEN/Robert J. Dau Prize Winner
Are not we all just fleshy, rebellious little sculptures that move about the world, evoke emotion, make impact? More
PEN America Speaks: How We Defended and Celebrated Free Expression The Week of September 4
PEN America works tirelessly to defend free expression, support persecuted writers, and promote literary culture. Here are some of the latest ways PEN America is speaking out. More