DeSantis’ Anti-Protest Proposal Shows Flagrant Disregard for First Amendment
“Florida Governor DeSantis' anti-protest bill politicizes the right to protest and flagrantly disregards the protections provided by the First Amendment." More
PEN America Condemns Belarus’ Campaign of Intimidation Against Nobel-Winner Svetlana Alexievich
"All that stands between Svetlana Alexievich and arrest is international pressure and the physical bodies of European diplomats." More
Skidmore Should Stand Strong for Basic Assembly Rights
"It should be easy for Skidmore to ardently defend his basic civil liberties, and clearly and unequivocally explain why these calls are so disproportionate and extreme." More
Kenosha Authorities Must Commit to Protecting Protesters
PEN America is calling for public authorities in Kenosha, WI to ensure protesters are safe and protected in the wake of Tuesday night's fatal shooting and the arrest of… More
PEN America Demands Release of Three Belarusian Theater Company Members
"We must call a wolf a wolf: President Lukashenko’s crackdown on protests in the wake of this rigged election is meant to silence dissent and purge his critics." More
Arrested Zimbabwean Novelist Must Be Released
"Would that the regime cared as much about those issues as it does about silencing those who dare to raise their voices in dissent." More
Snatching of Protesters in Portland “Astonishing Act of Repression”
(New York, NY) — Federal law enforcement officers have been using unmarked vehicles and detaining demonstrators in the Portland area since mid-July. PEN America's Nora Benavidez, director of U.S.… More
Toward a More Just World: A PEN America Statement
Bigotry is also an affront to free speech, for when words and acts willfully inflict terror and harm, they subvert open discourse. More
State Laws Criminalizing Protest on the Rise
PEN America finds that the resurgence in recent years of public protest in the U.S. has been accompanied by a new wave of attacks on protest rights. More
IOC Guidelines Infringe on Athletes’ Free Expression
(New York, NY) – The International Olympic Committee's new guidelines narrow the space for political expression by athletes during the Olympic Games and infringe on free expression, PEN America… More
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PEN America On 
Political rhetoric from Trump & the US AG is trickling down, bolstering federal prosecutorial efforts to build a national police power and to impose extreme penalties on protesters. Penalties for First Amendment activity have risen since Trump took office. https://www.npr.org/2020/09/27/917424823/critics-say-federal-prosecutors-are-pushing-the-envelope-with-protest-charges
