(NEW YORK)—PEN America responds to reporting that the National Science Foundation (NSF) is screening research projects for a list of trigger words to comply with recent executive orders
Jonathan Friedman, Sy Syms managing director of U.S. Free Expression Programs at PEN America, said: “This action out of the NSF is ideological censorship, at its most ruthless and destructive. We now live in a country where scientists have to watch what they write or say, for fear the government will retaliate against them. The impact will obviously range way beyond a policy discussion about DEI. When the government starts screening research projects for a list of forbidden words, whole areas of research will be put at risk, across public health, safety, human development, and more. Even common terms like ‘female,’ ‘institutional,’ and ‘historically,’ are apparently enough to draw this new official scrutiny. This attack on academic freedom and scientific inquiry is absurd, but one that the country now has to contend with.”
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Malka Margolies, [email protected]