PEN America Announces Detained Chinese Essayist Xu Zhiyong as 2020 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award Honoree
"His essays have served as calls to conscience at pivotal moments in China’s recent history." More
PEN America: China, Saudi Arabia, Turkey Are World’s Worst Jailers of Writers
"The Index spotlights governments’ nefarious will to suppress truth and control the public mind by silencing writers who dare challenge authority." More
Egypt Going to Extreme Lengths to Quash Dissent, Imprisoning Writers as Part of Broader Crackdown
“The Sisi regime is engaged in a desperate but nonetheless brutal attempt to silence even the slightest expression of dissent." More
Read Oleg Sentsov’s Acceptance Letter from the Solidarity of Arts Festival
"It's easy to be a revolutionary when revolution has already won. And much more difficult when the oppressor is still strong and the chances to win are small." More
Saudi Activist Rejects Deal to Recant Torture Allegations
“This attempt at coercion is a pathetic effort by the Saudi state to use propaganda to paper over its dire human rights reputation." More
He Is Not Forgotten: Celebrating Oleg Sentsov’s Birthday, His Sixth in Captivity
PEN America congratulates Oleg Sentsov on his 43rd birthday, which serves as a reminder to the world not to forget him in his plight. More
SIGN NOW: Demand Charges be Dropped Against Three Saudi Writer-Activists
Sign the petition to call on the Saudi Arabian government to drop all charges against these courageous writer-activists and 2019 Freedom to Write awardees. More
Writer, Activist, and 2019 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award Honoree Eman Al-Nafjan’s Release a Ray of Hope for Justice
"The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award has for decades been a powerful tool to pry free courageous writers who take the greatest risks in order to express themselves. While… More
Egyptian Government Suing Author Alaa al-Aswany Part of Mission to Harass and Silence Writers
“Al-Aswany is being accused merely because of his criticism of President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. The government is blatantly pursuing a mission to harass writers and to censor voices reflecting the diversity and… More
PEN America to Honor Imprisoned Saudi Writer-Activists and Women’s Rights Champions Nouf Abdulaziz, Loujain Al-Hathloul, and Eman Al-Nafjan with the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award at 2019 Literary Gala
"We are proud to honor these drivers of change—Nouf Abdulaziz, Loujain Al-Hathloul, and Eman Al-Nafjan—for their fearless words and actions, and to send a strong signal that international pressure… More
Alert Us
Are you an artist at risk or know someone who is?
PEN America On 
Come work with us! Our development department is looking for a development and events coordinator. The role straddles database and donor management, and also assists with events and other key responsibilities. https://bit.ly/2ZqOvX8
Republicans and Democrats are both gunning for #Section230, the law that created the Internet. Read up on last week's (mostly bad) proposals and what they could mean for free expression online: https://bit.ly/3dUCiz4.
Check out @SuzanneNossel's Washington Post Five Myths about free speech piece, picked up by @StribOpinion: https://www.startribune.com/five-myths-about-free-speech/571602452/ https://twitter.com/vestopr/status/1276616795424731136