PEN America
Donate Now
  • Issues & Advocacy
    • Book Bans
    • PEN America v. Escambia County School District
    • Educational Censorship
    • Campus Free Speech
    • Disinformation
    • Online Abuse
    • Writers at Risk
    • Artists at Risk Connection (ARC)
    • Global Advocacy
    • NYC Literary Action Coalition
    • Next Gen PEN
  • Writers & Readers
    • Literary Awards
    • Grants & Fellowships
    • PEN Across America
    • Prison and Justice Writing
    • Workshops & Trainings
    • Writers in the Schools Committee
    • Children’s and YA Books Committee
    • Translation Committee
  • Festival & Events
    • Events Calendar
    • Event Series
    • 2023 World Voices Festival
    • 2023 PEN America Literary Gala
    • World Press Freedom Day 2023
    • 2023 PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony
    • Authors’ Evenings
  • Read The Latest
    • Research & Reports
    • Take Action
    • #FreeTheBooks
    • Press Releases
    • Interviews & Features
    • PEN America Publications
  • Membership
  • About
    • PEN America at 100
    • About Us
    • PEN America Racial Equity Statement
    • Leadership and Staff
    • Trustees
    • Careers
    • Digital Archives
  • Give
    • Donate Now
    • Become a PEN America Young Patron
    • More Ways to Give
    • Shop
PEN America
Donate Now
  • Advocacy
    & Action
  • Writers
    & Readers
  • Festivals
    & Events
  • Issues & Advocacy
    • Book Bans
    • PEN America v. Escambia County School District
    • Educational Censorship
    • Campus Free Speech
    • Disinformation
    • Online Abuse
    • Writers at Risk
    • Artists at Risk Connection (ARC)
    • Global Advocacy
    • NYC Literary Action Coalition
    • Next Gen PEN
  • Writers & Readers
    • Literary Awards
    • Grants & Fellowships
    • PEN Across America
    • Prison and Justice Writing
    • Workshops & Trainings
    • Writers in the Schools Committee
    • Children’s and YA Books Committee
    • Translation Committee
  • Festival & Events
    • Events Calendar
    • Event Series
    • 2023 World Voices Festival
    • 2023 PEN America Literary Gala
    • World Press Freedom Day 2023
    • 2023 PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony
    • Authors’ Evenings
  • Read The Latest
    • Research & Reports
    • Take Action
    • #FreeTheBooks
    • Press Releases
    • Interviews & Features
    • PEN America Publications
  • Membership
  • About
    • PEN America at 100
    • About Us
    • PEN America Racial Equity Statement
    • Leadership and Staff
    • Trustees
    • Careers
    • Digital Archives
  • Give
    • Donate Now
    • Become a PEN America Young Patron
    • More Ways to Give
    • Shop
  • Home

PEN America Defends as Protected Speech a City University of New York Law Student’s Commencement Criticism of Israel and New York Police

Press ReleaseMay 31, 2023

In response, Kristen Shahverdian, senior manager of free expression and education at PEN America, released the following statement: “Lawmakers have absolutely no right to threaten University funding based on speech… More

PEN America: Choice to Rescind Permission for Event at Medical College of Wisconsin Sends the Message that Speakers Must Pass Through an “Ideological Litmus Test”

Press ReleaseMay 8, 2023

"The choice to rescind permission for this event sends a message that the exchange of ideas at the Medical College of Wisconsin is not truly free and must pass… More

Student Decision to Prevent Speaker from On-Campus Talk in Spokane is Disappointing, Especially in Light of Historic Levels of Education Censorship, Says PEN America

Press ReleaseMay 2, 2023

Kristen Shahverdian, senior manager of free expression and education at PEN America, released the following statement: “It is disappointing to see a student group fearful of inviting a speaker based… More

Disruption and Harassment at Riley Gaines Speaking Event Made a “Mockery” of Free Speech

Press ReleaseApril 7, 2023

“What happened at SFSU was a disaster,” said Kristen Shahverdian, senior manager in free expression and education. “Physical intimidation or violence is never an acceptable response to speech, no… More

Protecting Free Speech on College Campuses is Essential to Preserving Academic Freedom, Says PEN America CEO

Press ReleaseMarch 29, 2023

“Students often lack awareness of the First Amendment or the precepts of academic freedom, sometimes believing that the best answer to noxious ideas is to drown them out, or… More

PEN America: ‘This escalating battle for control over free expression in education should worry us all’

newsMarch 29, 2023

PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel testified that the rise in educational gag orders and "escalating battle for control over free expression in education should worry us all."  More

Student Disruption of a Judge’s Speech at Stanford U Deserved a Forceful Defense of Free Speech by the Administration, Says PEN America

Press ReleaseMarch 14, 2023

“When a speaker has been invited to campus, they deserve the ability to speak and be heard, said Kristen Shahverdian, senior manager in free expression and education. “Students have… More

Universities Must Prioritize Both Campus Safety and Free Speech as Complementary, Not Competing Imperatives

analysisNovember 3, 2022

During the past month, two public universities dealt with campus confrontations involving controversial speakers, student protesters, and apparent members of the Proud Boys, an organization heavily implicated in the… More

Political Litmus Test for Campus Speakers is Inimical to the Mission of Higher Education

Press ReleaseOctober 4, 2022

“Berkeley Law School appears to have handled this controversy effectively,” Young continued, “making clear the provision violated the tenets of free speech, while also acknowledging that the student group… More

“Heckler’s Veto” Has No Place in Interrupting Speakers on College Campuses

Press ReleaseSeptember 21, 2022

(NEW YORK) -- Protestors at the University of New Mexico last week interrupted a speech by conservative commentator Tomi Lahren, who appeared at the invitation of conservative student group… More

Posts navigation

1 2 3 … 8 next

Join PEN America Today

Defend free expression, support persecuted writers, and promote literary culture.

Subscribe

Get updates on events, literary awards, free expression issues, and global news.

 
 
  • What's New
PEN America Responds to Florida School District’s Offer to Remove LGBTQ Pages from Yearbook
The PEN Ten: An Interview with Grace E. Lavery
PEN America Decries Continued Imprisonment of Poet Galal El-Behairy, Who is Prepared to Escalate his Hunger Strike by Refusing Water
PEN America Defends as Protected Speech a City University of New York Law Student’s Commencement Criticism of Israel and New York Police

Alert Us

Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?

PEN America
588 Broadway, Suite 303
New York, NY 10012
T (212) 334-1660 F (212) 334-2181
PEN America Los Angeles
1370 N. St Andrews Place
Los Angeles, CA 90028
T (323) 424-4939
PEN America Washington, D.C.
1100 13th Street NW, Suite 800
Washington, D.C. 20005
Donate Today
 
Copyright © 2023 PEN America. All rights reserved.   |   Privacy Policy