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 joined 28 other press freedom and media organizations in signing a letter condemning attacks on journalists covering immigration protests in the Los Angeles area. Read it here.
- In response to a vote in the House to remove funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PEN America urged senators to reject this package, saying it would gravely affect local media. “The House’s vote to gut federal funding for NPR and PBS is a politically motivated move that betrays the millions of Americans who rely on public media,” said Tim Richardson, journalism and disinformation program director. “The Senate must uphold its responsibility to preserve independent journalism, particularly at the local level.” Read our press release. Send a letter to Congress.
- In a win for freedom to read advocates, the Rutherford County Library System voted unanimously last week to rescind a March decision to remove books dealing with transgender topics from public libraries. PEN America had filed a lawsuit in April in response to the removal of more than 145 books from local schools. Read more here.
- In the Hillsborough County school district in Florida, book bannings have reached a frightening new level. Read more and take action here.
- Two lawsuits were settled this week regarding book bans in St. Francis, Minnesota, and the school district has agreed to return all removed books to library shelves, adopt a policy for library purchases and book challenges aligned with state law, and guarantee participation by parents, students, and qualified media specialists. “The community members who have fought back against book censorship in St. Francis has set an inspiring and admirable example,” said Jonathan Friedman, Sy Syms managing director for U.S. Free Expression Programs. “This is a win that belongs to many, and will reverberate far beyond the boundaries of a single school district.” Read our full statement here.
- Eritrea has the longest-detained writers and journalists in the world with at least 12 of them detained without trial since 2001. In a blog post, Dietlind Lerner, with inputs from PEN Eritrea details the situation on the ground and calls for global support. Read here.
- PEN America strongly condemned a cease and desist letter sent to the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper by Florida’s child welfare agency, the Department of Children and Families. “We stand with the Orlando Sentinel and look forward to reading their accountability journalism once their reporting is published. Government attempts to intimidate a free press only underscore the importance of the work,” said Tim Richardson, journalism and disinformation program director. Read our full statement.
- PEN America welcomed a federal judge’s ruling that Mahmoud Khalil must be released after being held wrongfully since his arrest in early March. Following Khalil’s continued detention today, Kristen Shahverdian, Campus Free Speech director at PEN America said, “The Trump administration’s tortured reasoning for Mahmoud Khalil’s continued detention makes clear how far they are willing to take their attempts to circumvent the rule of law. They are playing cynical word games with a man’s life and freedom. Mr. Khalil must be immediately released.” Read our full statements here and here.
- PEN America last year launched Campus Advocates Fellowship who received mentorship and the opportunity to not only deepen their own understanding of academic freedom, but also the tools and language to share that knowledge with others. Meet the inaugural cohort here.
- PEN America’s Arizona chapter, in honor of World Press Freedom Day, hosted Reporters Take Up the Pen to celebrate Arizona reporters who have written books at Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale. Chapter leader Michelle Beaver gives us a rundown; read here.
- PEN America’s Clare Carter spoke to four students from the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg who recently formed College Students for Expression (CSFE) to advocate for free expression and diversity, equity, and inclusion on their campus and across the state of Florida. Read her findings here.
- PEN International recently launched the Young Writers Committee which aims to connect and support authors under 35 through mentorship, advocacy, collaborative projects, and storytelling spaces. A core steering group of 10 representatives—including one from PEN America—is spearheading these efforts, with membership from 58 countries. Learn more here.
- PEN America’s Jonathan Friedman was quoted in a story by Sydney Morning News on words banned by the Trump administration. Read it here. See our growing list of words here.
- The Hechinger Report published an op-ed by writer Katherine Locke whose book is among the banned children’s picture books involved in a SCOTUS case Mahmoud v Taylor expecting a ruling soon. Read the piece here.
- Writer Susan Choi in a recent interview with Elle mentioned PEN America as the literary organization/charity she supports. Read the full interview here.
- For this week’s PEN Ten, Melissa Joskow spoke to V. E. Schwab about her latest novel Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil which interweaves the lives of three women across centuries in a gripping, dark, gory narrative. Read the full interview here.
