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Drag Queen story hour

Laws restricting drag shows should scare everyone who believes in free expression

Advocacy
By: Kate Ruane, Jonathan Friedman, Samantha LaFrance, Julie Trébault | January 19, 2023

A wave of bills restricting free expression is building in state legislatures. This time, the target is drag performances.  More

The Counter Narrative Project: Messaging, Media & Monkeypox

The Counter Narrative Project: Messaging, Media & Monkeypox

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 | 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm ET
 More Information

Virginia State Judge Affirms First Amendment Rights in Ruling on Obscenity Lawsuit Targeting Books

Press ReleaseAugust 31, 2022

“This decision is a victory for our Constitution and the vast majority of Americans who believe in preserving a free society and unfettered access to literature. The open exchange… More

Joys of Queerness and the Word: An Indigiqueer Reading. A special event featuring emerging Native poets and a celebration of LGTBQ2S people

Joys of Queerness and the Word: An Indigiqueer Reading

Saturday, June 25, 2022 | 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm MT
 More Information
Eliot Schrefer and Padma Venkatraman headshots

PEN Pals: Eliot Schrefer and Padma Venkatraman on When Others Take Up the Torch

InterviewJanuary 5, 2022

“I knew I couldn’t contribute to the cultural life of an institution that actively discriminates against its students—that didn’t want people like me to exist.” More

Headshots of Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore, Steven Reigns, and William Johnson; at the bottom: "Miami Book Fair In Conversation: Queer Writing on Growing Up with the AIDS Crisis"

[VIRTUAL] Miami Book Fair in Conversation: Queer Writing on Growing Up with the AIDS Crisis

Wednesday, November 17, 2021 | 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET
 More Information
“The Counter Narrative Project: HIV Justice & Journalism Roundtable” and logos of Counter Narrative Project and PEN America

[VIRTUAL] The Counter Narrative Project: HIV Justice & Journalism Roundtable

Tuesday, November 30, 2021 | 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm ET
 More Information
Susan Kuklin and Fatima Shaik headshots

PEN Pals: Fatima Shaik Interviews Susan Kuklin About LGBTQ+ Books and How They Save Lives

InterviewNovember 19, 2021

“The library is supposed to be an inclusive institution, conceived for all, not some or a few.” More

Words and Actions: A Pride Month Reading List from ONE Archives Foundation book covers

Words and Actions: A Pride Month Reading List from ONE Archives Foundation

Recommended Reading

This Pride Month, PEN America Los Angeles invited the ONE Archives Foundation to create a reading list as an extension of their exhibition, Pride Publics: Words and Actions. More

Jason Parsley headshot

Local LGBTQ+ Reporters in Conversation: Jason Parsley

InterviewJune 17, 2021

“LGBT presses are not in it to make money, per se. . . . There is a love and a sense of community that big corporations do not care… 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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