PEN America Issues Urgent Call to Release Nasrin Sotoudeh Amid Pandemic
"Nasrin's condition is critical and her life hangs in the balance, but her spirit remains unbroken and her calls for justice are reverberating around the world." More
Iranian Musician Faces Spurious, Politically-Motivated Charges
"Rajabian is again being treated as a criminal simply for being a socially-conscious musician." More
Health of Iranian Activist Hunger Striker Deteriorating
"We are heartbroken to see Nasrin’s health deteriorate day by day while imprisoned on unjust charges in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison." More
Nasrin Sotoudeh | Status: Imprisoned | Iran
Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent writer, human rights lawyer and activist, was abruptly re-arrested on June 13, 2018, and taken to Evin prison. Her arrest came shortly after her legal… More
PEN America Condemns Iran’s Sentencing of U.S.-based Iranian Writer and Activist’s Brother
“We are horrified that Alireza Alinejad—who has been detained without charge since September 2019—has been sentenced to an eight-year prison term on trumped-up charges.” More
Iran Must Release Activist Suspected of Having Coronavirus
“The continued imprisonment of Narges Mohammadi despite her deteriorating health is cruel and life-threatening." More
Death Sentence for Iranian Journalist Attempt to Silence Opposition
"Ruhollah Zam’s death sentence is a flagrant and extreme attack on human rights, and yet another instance of the ongoing crackdown on freedom of expression, a free press, and… More
U.S.-Based Iranian Activists Face Government-Led Threats
"Masih and her fellow activists are astonishingly courageous in their determination to write and speak about women’s rights in Iran despite the ongoing threats they face." More
Nasrin Sotoudeh, Imprisoned in Iran
Nasrin Sotoudeh is a human rights lawyer and public intellectual who has faced harassment and intimidation for years and spent time in and out of prison. More
Iran Bans Print Media in Response to COVID-19
(New York, NY) – In response to an Iranian coronavirus task force's wholesale ban on print media, Summer Lopez, PEN America's senior director of free expression programs, issued the following… More
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Political rhetoric from Trump & the US AG is trickling down, bolstering federal prosecutorial efforts to build a national police power and to impose extreme penalties on protesters. Penalties for First Amendment activity have risen since Trump took office. https://www.npr.org/2020/09/27/917424823/critics-say-federal-prosecutors-are-pushing-the-envelope-with-protest-charges