Proposed New Florida Law Would Place the “Most Draconian and Censorious” Restrictions on Higher Education in the Country, Says PEN America
“HB 999 would enact perhaps the most draconian and censorious restrictions on public colleges and universities in the country,” said Jeremy C. Young, senior manager of free expression and… More
College Board’s Revision of AP African-American Studies Curriculum Dilutes the Course Content in Apparent Capitulation to Censors
Jeremy C. Young, senior manager of free expression and education at PEN America, released the following statement: "Coming in the current political climate, the proposed changes appear to be an… More
PEN America: Florida Engages in “Witch Hunt” to Find Out How Public Colleges and Universities are Spending Funds Related to Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion
Jeremy C. Young, senior manager, free expression and education at PEN America, issued the following statement: “The governor’s request looks more like a witch hunt than a serious effort to… More
Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools
“More” is the operative word for this report on school book bans, which offers the first comprehensive look at bans throughout the 2021–22 school year. More
Letter to the Burbank Unified School District
PEN America urges the Burbank Unified School District to rescind its policy which prohibits any instructional materials with the "N-word'' from being used as mandatory reading. More
5 Myths about Educational Gag Orders
The legislators behind these gag orders are not interested in a productive back-and-forth with educators; what they want is simply to dictate the terms of teachers’ surrender. More
For Educational Gag Orders, The Vagueness Is The Point
We find that instead of clarifying the laws, guidance documents have muddied the waters, further eroding academic freedom and students’ right to learn. More
Conservatives Oppose Educational Gag Orders, Too
Casual observers of the recent wave of educational gag orders could be forgiven for thinking that views on this issue are perfectly polarized along ideological lines. Conservatives support these… More
Educational Gag Orders Seek to Enforce Compulsory Patriotism
Three New Bills Become Law in Florida, Mississippi, and South Dakota Monthly Roundup, March This post is part of a series from PEN America tracking the progress of educational gag orders… More
Educational Gag Orders Target Speech about LGBTQ+ Identities With New Prohibitions and Punishments
The effort to censor anti-LGBTQ identities in the classroom is expanding rapidly. More
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