2014 PEN Literary Gala // Opening Remarks: Peter Godwin (audio)
On May 5, at PEN’s 2014 Literary Gala, Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter, received the inaugural PEN/Toni and James C. Goodale Digital Freedom Award for bringing new forms of expression to hundreds of millions worldwide.
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
"When local Nebraska police came knocking in June, before Roe v Wade was officially overturned... private messages between (a 17-yo & her mother) discussing how to obtain abortion pills were given to police... The teenager is now being tried as an adult." https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/aug/10/facebook-user-data-abortion-nebraska-police
"Like most Americans, you might believe books have a settled status in our culture—that even if they contain sexual material, they’re protected by the #FirstAmendment," writes @dankois.
Now, Republicans in VA are asking a judge to change US obscenity law. https://slate.com/culture/2022/08/book-banning-republicans-gender-queer-obscenity-supreme-court.html
“When we read these books... everyone is in agreement that (they) are very educational and should be allowed in our classrooms,” says Vandegrift High School Banned Book Club co-founder Alyssa Hoy. "They start very tough conversations that need to be had.” https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/how-teens-are-pushing-back-on-book-bans
