Prison Book Bans, Protect Mass Incarceration
I resist the dehumanization that prisons create, which is further maintained by unjust censorship. More
Filmed Production of Mahogany L. Browne’s New Choreopoem Quilted Steel—Telling the Stories of Formerly Incarcerated Black Women—Premiers June 13 at Lincoln Center Atrium
Caits Meissner, director of PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing Program, who produced the project, said: “This collaboration is a call to bear unflinching witness. The project demands that… More
Prison and Justice Writing
PEN America’s Prison and Justice Writing program amplifies the work of thousands of writers who are creating while incarcerated in the United States. More
The Sentences That Create Us
A road map for incarcerated people and their allies to have a thriving writing life behind bars—and shared beyond the walls—that draws on the unique insights of more than… More
Temperature Check, Vol. 13: Reflections, The Closing Issue
Our Temperature Check series concludes with updates from featured guests and writers as well as the latest in legislative and organizational advocacy efforts. More
Temperature Check, Vol. 12: Prison Journalism in the Time of COVID-19
Exploring prison journalism during the pandemic through articles from the Prison Journalism Project and a podcast interview with Yukari Kane and Shaheen Pasha. More
Temperature Check, Vol. 11: Vaccination Behind Bars
Exploring vaccination behind bars and reflecting on one year of COVID in prisons through memorials and a Works of Justice interview with Dr. Bruce Western. More
Temperature Check, Vol. 10: Family Through The Walls
Explore the issue of carceral family separation through an award-winning piece of fiction by incarcerated writer Amy Bishop Anderson and Works of Justice Podcast episodes with Ebony Underwood and… More
Temperature Check, Vol. Nine: The Election Issue
Manhattan DA Candidate Lucy Lang explores a district attorney’s role during COVID-19, and writer/activist Corey “Al-Ameen” Patterson details the importance of voting behind bars. More
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
“#Diversity is demonstrably good for business and only helps employees and teams better empathize with each other and their customers,” says @Honeyfund's @saramarg
PEN America has filed an Amicus brief in her case against Ron DeSantis' “Stop W.O.K.E.” act https://pen.org/pen-america-supports-challenge-to-desantis-stop-woke-law/
Orange County library app ban sets “worrisome precedent.”
"Amid the wave of book bans and educational censorship... there’s a misconception that #California is going to be immune to these forces. Clearly, that’s mistaken," says PEN America's Allison Lee.
https://pen.org/press-release/suspension-of-virtual-library-app-by-cas-orange-unified-school-district-is-an-overreaction-and-sets-a-worrisome-precedent/
“A Florida law signed by DeSantis… is about establishing the idea that books are inherently dangerous objects, to the degree that no student can be allowed to handle one without heavy-handed surveillance,” writes @AmandaMarcotte #FreedomToRead https://www.salon.com/2023/01/25/sorry-twitter-but-floridas-on-books-is-no-joke--ron-desantis-wants-to-keep-kids-from-reading/