Legal Filing by PEN America Urges Appeals Court to Uphold Injunction Against Iowa’s Book Ban Law
Katie Blankenship, director of PEN America’s Florida office, said: “Under the guise of protecting children from so-called age-inappropriate content, laws like SF496 are a smokescreen for censorship of constitutionally-protected… More
New Report Finds Unprecedented Surge in School Books Bans
“Students are at the epicenter of the book banning movement, and they’re fearlessly spearheading the fight against this insidious encroachment into what they can read and learn across the… More
Settlement Allows Teachers to Discuss Sexual Orientation in Florida Classrooms
“This is a step in the right direction, but the fight against this dangerous law continues-- learning about diverse families should not be off-limits in Florida schools,” said Katie… More
PEN America: Passage of Teacher Training Bill by Florida Senate is a Giant Leap in the Wrong Direction
Katie Blankenship, director of PEN America Florida, said: “HB 1291 is nothing but an educational gag order that muzzles professors on ideas and concepts at both public and private… More
PEN America Applauds 11th Circuit Court of Appeals Ruling Affirming Injunction of Florida’s Stop WOKE Act
Elly Brinkley, staff attorney with PEN America, said: “We are gratified that the court recognized that government should have no role in deciding how employers can or should limit… More
Calls by Lawmakers to Disband LGBTQ Studies and Remove “Critical Race Theory” at Texas A & M
Jeremy C. Young, Freedom to Learn program director at PEN America, said in response: “This level of ideological meddling into the affairs of a university by politicians is frightening.… More
Coalition of 20 Groups Press Lawmakers to Reject Florida Teacher Training Bill
“This bill is as dystopian as the original Stop WOKE Act, and would undermine teacher training across key classroom topics, from history and literature to social studies and current… More
Quiet Rewrite of Barnard College Policy Appears to be an Effort to Suppress Speech
“The swift rollout of these new website policies, without faculty consultation, makes plain that they are a response to pro-Palestinian speech that someone wanted to suppress,” said Jonathan Friedman,… More
PEN America Expresses Relief Over Court Injunction Against Texas Law Requiring Sexual Ratings for School Books
“Booksellers are essential in advancing the freedom to read for all. Blocking the implementation of HB 900 will help ensure authors can reach Texas audiences and bookstores can distribute… More
Data from Two School Years of Book Banning Show Spread of Copycat Bans and a “Scarlet Letter” Effect for Authors
“Book banners have effectively marked a group of authors with a ‘scarlet letter,” which has intensified the pace and scope of book banning in schools,” said Kasey Meehan, Freedom… More