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.
- Time is running out to submit to the PEN America Literary Awards! Each year, we honor outstanding voices in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translation, and more, conferring nearly $350,000 onto writers and translators. Submit here before August 1, and submit to the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers before September 1.
- On July 18, we joined Lemony Snicket and local advocates in Murfreesboro, Tennessee at a Freedom to Read celebration. “We are seeing rampant book banning of all kinds, and very little being done to stop it. … Young people have a right to rich engagement with books and humanity in the library, and that’s what’s being taken away,” said Jonathan Friedman, Sy Syms managing director for U.S. free expression programs. Read about the celebration, take a look at photos from the event, and read Snicket’s op-ed on book bans in The Tennessean if you missed it.
- Gloria Walker joined with other members of the Right to Read Coalition on Capitol Hill to urge Congress to oppose several federal proposals that restrict access to books and educational materials. See more about the bills and send your own letter to Congress.
- We spoke to Nikole Hannah-Jones about the six-year anniversary of the first modern educational gag order, the Saving American History Act by Tom Cotton, explicitly written to prohibit The 1619 Project being taught in schools. Here’s what she had to say.
- For the final installment of You Are A Writer, PEN America’s workshop series for early-career writers, four industry experts delved into how a book makes its way from a writer’s hands onto shelves. Check out their tips on how to get your book published, and catch up on the earlier sessions of You Are A Writer (on how to research for narrative storytelling, how to write fiction in today’s world, and how to build literary habits and community).
- Freedom of expression and academic freedom have been chilled on college campuses across the country as professors are increasingly surveilled in and outside of the classroom. Here’s what you need to know about the new ways their behavior is being monitored.
- Kasey Meehan, program director for Freedom to Read, spoke to Pittsburgh’s Public Source about controversies over Pride month book displays in public libraries. She explained that efforts to suppress LGBTQ+ materials can negatively impact children who might share identities with those represented in those books. Read more.
- Tim Richardson, journalism and disinformation program director, spoke to SRF News about the Trump administration’s subpoenas to New York Times journalists. Watch the report (in German), and read PEN America’s earlier statement on the subpoenas.
