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Rising Restrictions on Artistic Freedom in Africa Linked to Political Crises, Flawed Elections and Covid

Press ReleaseNovember 22, 2022

“Over the last few years in Africa, we have witnessed disturbing attacks on artists from around the continent, accompanied by widespread and pernicious efforts to dampen the right to… More

Jenny Holzer Art Installation to Light Up Rockefeller Center Buildings with Prose in Celebration of PEN America’s 100th Birthday, Starting Wed., 9/14

Press ReleaseSeptember 13, 2022

The outdoor installation, titled SPEECH ITSELF, will include quotes from more than 60 authors in a visual tribute to the right to express ourselves freely. Among the authors whose… More

Artist Jenny Holzer to Light Up Rockefeller Center in Tribute to PEN America’s 100 Years of Defending Free Expression

Press ReleaseAugust 29, 2022

Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, said: “Because her work reifies and celebrates words, there could not be an artist more fitting to celebrate PEN America’s centenary than the… More

A hand raised in a three finger salute

The PEN Pod: Fighting for Artistic Freedom in Myanmar with Karin Deutsch Karlekar and Bart Was Not Here

InterviewDecember 17, 2021

“It’s really striking to see the degree to which writing is at the heart of what we are debating about. . . . we are seeing just… More

Jennifer Finney Boylan speaking at a podium

A Story of Two Brains

Remarks
By: Jennifer Finney Boylan | December 13, 2021

“That’s what artists do: We imagine possibilities. . . . But the thing is, sometimes we get it wrong.” More

image of rapper El Radikal

Cuban Rapper El Radikal Released on Bail

Press ReleaseAugust 26, 2021

After 40 days of detention, Cuban rapper Richard Adrián Zamora Brito, known as El Radikal, was released last Friday on bail. More

Demonstrators holding placards and copies of the Cumhuriyet daily newspaper at a protest

Cracking Down on Creative Voices: Turkey’s Silencing of Writers, Intellectuals, and Artists Five Years After the Failed Coup

Report

PEN America outlines the legal mechanisms that the Turkish government has used to silence writers, activists, artists, academics, and creative professionals. More

Demonstrators holding placards and copies of the Cumhuriyet daily newspaper at a protest

[VIRTUAL] Cracking Down on Creative Voices: Turkey’s Silencing of Writers, Intellectuals, and Artists Five Years After the Failed Coup

Tuesday, June 29, 2021 | 1:00 pm – 2:15 pm ET
 More Information
artist Yulia Tsvetkova

Trial of Russian Artist Charged With “Disseminating Pornography” Begins

Press ReleaseApril 15, 2021

A Russian feminist artist and LGBTQIA+ activist is being tried this week on charges of disseminating pornography for her artwork that depicts nude bodies. More

Maaza Mengiste headshot

The PEN Pod: Finding Inspiration in History with Maaza Mengiste

InterviewSeptember 8, 2020

“What writers and novelists force us to do in the work is to pause. . . And if there’s anything that COVID has made me consider, it’s how we… More

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  • What's New
Salman Rushdie’s New Novel Turns a Spotlight On the Enduring Power of Stories
PEN America: Arrest of Protesters in Georgia on Broad and Vaguely-Worded ‘Domestic Terrorism’ Charges Could Chill the Right to Protest
PEN America Speaks: How We Defended and Celebrated Free Expression This Week
PEN America Condemns Ongoing Russian Efforts to Stifle Independent Media and Civil Society

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jonfreadom Jonathan Friedman 📚 @jonfreadom ·
15h

More book purging in FLORIDA https://twitter.com/FLFreedomRead/status/1620457139272814593

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penamerica PEN America @penamerica ·
12h

DeSantis' "disturbing pattern of silencing Black voices and aggressive attempts to erase Black history is one of the most visible examples of performative white supremacy since the presidency of Donald Trump"—@JNelsonLDF

#BlackHistoryMonth Read free: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/31/opinion/ron-desantis-black-history.html?unlocked_article_code=ihVqWDErMhDhg6k3c2neR43rmBDQJ-ZGYT0K4vIFW1656Ol0iuuZCoNguhERybhjjHxY_on_saXa1h9dkfw4PMDyAPhEB81Z2MpF4xFhXcbJwvM3ob4crJCqdCgSJqnNfCO6oS-22DixWt6x8kbeIm5sTyHf_GuWD9-Z0qQ1WQNc1xI8CWRh9RZWEiM_VppdwfREB89x9Hw6BWDN-Srt5ATsifYAGobICcqo3HRKlmhVrGEsAWrxXhQ-GJpCUKKAt5ClgarNNHZl6yQ8wQ26Y6UQ5HIuR4kR-0CMl0d3rx1RpK92k07qb6HFWf07qSe8morMKPioGBNgZFVkqtJA7AHGwro&smid=share-url

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penamerica PEN America @penamerica ·
12h

On Feb 14, 6-7 pm, Brooklyn Public Library @BKLYNlibrary will be screening "The Satanic Verses: 30 Years On", a documentary about the controversy surrounding @SalmanRushdie's 1988 novel and the freedom of speech debate it sparked. Sign up: https://www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/litfilm-2023-satanic-central-library-dweck-20230214

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