Free Speech 2020: An Interview with Nupol Kiazolu, President of Black Lives Matter Greater NY
“I just really want people—young people all around the world—to know that your voice is powerful, your voice holds weight, and your voice can change the world.” More
Joint Statement in Support of Student Rights to Free Speech in Schools
In response to the student arrested for refusing to say the Pledge of Allegiance in protest, PEN America stands in support of student free speech rights. More
DARE: How to Counter Donald Trump’s War on the Media
Journalists counter President Trump's anti-press epithet "enemy of the people" with examination of the tyrants who have also used this phrase. More
DARE: Roaring Protests of Commencements Past Make Way for a More Subdued Stand
Multiple accounts emerge of colleges and universities choosing commencement speakers based on hopes that their appearance and speeches will provoke fewer, or more subdued, protests. Comedian Samantha Bee apologizes… More
DARE: ‘Bigger than Watergate’: Trump Joins Push by Allies to Expose Role of an FBI Source
White House allies wage campaign to discredit Russia investigation on first anniversary of Robert Mueller III’s appointment as special counsel. Trump uses "animals" in discussion of immigrants, and debate… More
2018 PEN/Toni and James C. Goodale Freedom of Expression Courage Award: Cameron Kasky, Samantha Fuentes, and Zion Kelly
As part of their campaign, Kasky, Fuentes, and Kelly have forthrightly confronted the outsized impact of gun violence in black, Latino, and poor communities and the hurdles confronting communities… More
DARE: National School Walkout: Thousands Protest Against Gun Violence Across the U.S.
Schoolchildren across the country mount unprecedented coordinated protest to demand gun control. In defending against Trump libel suit over Steele dossier, Buzzfeed takes steps to provide Trump accuser Stormy… More
DARE: 11 of the Most Dramatic Moments in a Day of Confrontation Over Guns
Families and friends of Parkland victims mince no words in confronting the President, politicians, and the NRA on gun control at forums, the Florida State House, and in the… More
Public Officials’ Interference in Kennesaw State University Anthem Protests an Alarming Infringement on First Amendment Rights
Punishing students for peaceful expression is a clear infringement on their rights and a distortion of the role of the university in American life. More
Cancellation of “Free Speech Week” Events at UC Berkeley Not a Setback for Free Speech
From the start, the groups behind this planned conclave made clear their intent to showcase only a particular set of views, aimed to provoke outrage and bait those who… More
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PEN America On 
Jailed Vietnamese democracy advocate Tran Huynh Duy Thuc has launched a new hunger strike, his second in the last two months, demanding that his 16-year sentence for subversion be reduced in line with a law enacted after he was sentenced. https://bit.ly/3g2zqTE
Jimmy Lai, the founder of Hong Kong’s biggest pro-democracy newspaper, was denied bail on fraud charges on Thursday and ordered jailed until April by a court. https://nyti.ms/2JMGdo8