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.
- PEN America’s interim Co-CEOs Summer Lopez and Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf emphasized why the work we do on the ground in Florida is crucial to protecting the nation’s right to free speech. Referencing our recent report, The Blueprint State, they exposed how the Florida model is now being co-opted as the nation’s playbook. Read their letter here.
- PEN America condemned the sentencing of journalist Mzia Amaglobeli to two years in prison by a Georgian court. “This disproportionate and politically motivated sentence sends a chilling message to all journalists,” said Liesl Gerntholtz, managing director of the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center. Read our full statement here.
- PEN America expressed alarm over another round of sweeping book bans in nine counties in Florida where hundreds of books were pulled off school shelves. “Unless we speak up at school board meetings, in front of our state representatives, and in our communities, fear will continue to define the future of public education in Florida, becoming the new normal as the freedom to read is trampled,” said William Johnson, PEN America Florida Director. Read more here.
- PEN America talked to advocates in Rhode Island celebrating the passage of the nation’s strongest freedom to read act and traced their successful journey from forming a coalition to making it a law. “It’s just such a thrill that it’s here, and it’s really a win for everyone in Rhode Island,” said one of the advocates. Read more here.
- PEN America spotted the new, unusual book ban targets in town: cats and dogs. Among the 600 books bearing the brunt of censorship in Tennessee, several are about our feline friends. Find out why here.
- PEN America’s AJ Connelly writes why, as a way to honor Pete Seeger, the folk music greats, and Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (and its infamous rain), you need to stand up for the First Amendment. Read her impassioned call here.
- For this week’s Member Spotlight, we spoke to Reyna Grande whose memoir, A Dream Called Home, was recently named one of the best books of the 21st century so far by Kirkus Reviews, and illuminates themes of identity, belonging, and perseverance. Read the full interview here.
- PEN America successfully hosted Women in Translation Month Reading Series 2025 (Session 1) featuring Annie Tucker, Laksmi Pamuntjak, Nisha Susan, K R Meera, Nasim Luczaj, Malgorzata Żarów, Todd Fredson, Tanella Boni, Ranae Hanson, Britt Karin Larsen, and moderated by Christina Daub. Sign up for upcoming sessions here.
- The Hill published an op-ed by Timothy Richardon, director of journalism and disinformation program at PEN America about the rising assault on free press by President Trump’s administration. Read the op-ed here.
- The Hill also published another op-ed by Richardson about the authoritarian playbook President Trump is following by silencing journalists and undermining the free press, focusing on Mario Guevara, a Salvodoran journalist working in the United States who has been jailed. Read the op-ed here.
- University World News published a report on the assault by many states across the country on higher education, quoting Jonathan Friedman, the Sy Syms Managing Director of US free expression programs at PEN America. Read the report here.
- Friedman is also quoted in another story by University World News about the U.S. Attorney General’s sweeping new guidelines with a focus on DEI practices in higher education. Read the story here.
- The Florida Sun Sentinel quotes Kasey Meehan, the Freedom to Read Program Director at PEN America, in a story about a controversy in a Florida school regarding an online reading platform, Beanstack, having to comply with book laws. Read it here.
- Publishers Weekly covered the story of book bans in Florida and quoted PEN America Florida Director William Johnson. Read the piece here.
- PEN Across America’s Utah Chapter Leader Paisley Rekdal and Let Utah Read colleague Rebekah Cummings were guest panelists for recent screenings of The Librarians.
- The Washington Monthly featured an op-ed by Robert Scott, a PEN America Champion of Higher Education, on the importance of university boards to maintain independence and the need for them to back university presidents. Read the op-ed here.
