Sharp Criticism of Decision Designating Journalists Group in Belarus “Extremist”
“The Belarusian KGB’s decision to designate the Belarusian Association of Journalists as an extremist organization is a new escalation against free expression in the country,” said Polina Sadovskaya, PEN… More
Two Years After the Rigged Belarus Election, the United States Can Do More to Call Out Aleksandr Lukashenka’s Abuses
By Polina Sadovskaya The fraudulent election of Aleksandr Lukashenka as president of Belarus on August 9, 2020 surprised no one. Everyone expected him to ‘win,’ but very few wanted him… More
Detailing Severe Human Rights Abuses in Belarus, Leaders Call on the UN Human Rights Council to Extend the Mandate of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Belarus
In Taped Reading, Author Margaret Atwood Reads Letter from her Belarusian Translator About the Arrests and Jailing of Writers, Journalists and Publishers By Suzanne Trimel (NEW YORK)-- The severe deterioration of… More
PEN America Condemns Ihar Losik’s Politically Motivated Sentencing
“Ihar Losik is guilty of nothing more than exercising his fundamental right to freedom of expression,” said PEN America’s Eurasia Director Polina Sadovskaya. More
PEN America Condemns Continuous and Unjust Persecution of the Popular Rappers in Russia
Targeting rappers for their music part of ongoing assault on dissidents, artists, and human rights organizations. More
PEN America Welcomes PEN Belarus Report Detailing Persecution of Cultural Workers
PEN Belarus’s report documents the persecution of writers, artists, poets, and other cultural figures between January and September 2021. More
PEN America Welcomes Congressional Resolution Condemning Repression in Belarus
Representatives Steve Cohen (D-TN) and Joe Wilson (R-SC) introduced a resolution in the U.S. House decrying the Belarusian regime and its brutal suppression of the pro-democracy movement over the… More
PEN American Condemns Guilty Verdict in Sham Trial of Belarusian Activists
A court in Belarus’ capital Minsk this week convicted two opposition activists on politically-motivated charges of conspiracy to usurp state power. More
PEN America Condemns Continued Detention of Belarusian Musicians
Today PEN America condemned the continued detention of members of Belarusian fantasy-folk music group Irdorath. More
Court Formally Dissolves PEN Belarus
As Belarus marks one year since a fraudulent election kept President Aleksandr Lukashenka in power, a court in the country today formally dissolved PEN America's sister organization PEN Belarus. More
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
Educational gag orders represent a serious threat to the very academic autonomy that has allowed for so much intellectual discovery at our institutions. Read the op-ed in @Newsweek by @ACEducation's Ted Mitchell and @PENamerica's @SuzanneNossel.
http://ow.ly/igX150Nq5iX
@MarkGDuncan1 @vickijohnson Students retain their First Amendment rights in schools…. https://twitter.com/penamerica/status/1615368116359266305
“We are preparing students for life in a participatory democracy…” 📣 Please listen -> https://twitter.com/penamerica/status/1639040796522602497