Q&A with Burbank Unified School District Students
To make Black literature only accessible to students taking advanced courses narrows the amount of students that are able to have the in-classroom reading experience with the guidance of… More
For First Time, Oklahoma Education Officials Punish Two School Districts for Violating Gag Order on Teaching Race and Gender
“This case demonstrates the dangerous chilling effect gag orders can have,” said Jeremy C. Young, senior manager for free expression and education at PEN America and author of the… More
Educational Censorship
Today, books in the US are under profound attack. They are disappearing from library shelves, being challenged in droves, being decreed off limits by school boards, legislators, and prison… More
Order to Remove Dozens of Challenged Books in Texas, Including the Bible, Is an Appalling Violation of Students’ Rights
In response to the news, Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs at PEN America, said: "The sweeping attempt to remove these titles from classrooms and libraries… More
Utah School District’s Reversal on Decision to Remove 52 Books From School Libraries Is an Important Step in Recognizing Students’ Speech Rights
Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs at PEN America, said: "At a board meeting this week, the Alpine School Board announced that they will not be… More
Florida School District Slaps Stigmatizing and Alarming Warning Labels on Books Deemed “Unsuitable” for Children
Jonathan Friedman, director of free expression and education programs at PEN America, said in response: “This alarming development is just the latest in an onslaught of attacks against students’… More
Suspending Access to Library App Epic! Disregards Students First Amendment Rights, Says PEN America
Suspending access to 40,000 books without adherence to appropriate process, and with utter disregard for the First Amendment rights of the tens of thousands of students impacted, is a… More
Report: 1,586 School Book Bans and Restrictions in 86 School Districts Across 26 States
Book bans have targeted 1,145 unique book titles by 874 different authors, 198 illustrators, and 9 translators, impacting the literary, scholarly, and creative work of 1,081 people altogether. Texas… More
These 4 Florida Bills Censor Classroom Subjects and Ideas
These bills have been the subject of much public commentary, including an unfortunate amount of misinformation. To cut through the confusion, PEN America explains below the salient features of… More
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PEN America On 
The Russian authorities said on Thursday that they had detained an American journalist, Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal correspondent based in Moscow, accusing him of espionage. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/30/world/europe/russia-wsj-reporter-detained-gershkovich.html
#Bangladesh: Journalist Shamsuzzaman Shams charged over story about rising food prices
According to a local thinktank, nearly 3,000 people have been charged under the Digital Security Act since it was enacted in 2018, including about 280 journalists https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/mar/30/bangladesh-journalist-charged-over-story-about-rising-food-prices?CMP=share_btn_tw
Texas Observer will continue publishing after staff crowdfunds more than $300,000.
The crusading liberal magazine had planned to lay off its staff after its nonprofit board voted to shut down. But it reversed course on Wednesday.
https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/29/texas-observer-keep-publishing/