Media Advisory
(NEW YORK)— PEN America is releasing a special report and analysis on April 29 of the first 100 days of the Trump administration, which it views as a five-alarm fire for free speech, free expression, K-12 and higher education, the right to protest, and other basic rights, along with a war against ideas and language.
The writers and free expression advocacy group, which defends writers worldwide against authoritarian regimes, says the opening weeks of the administration are unlike anything seen in this country since the Red Scare McCarthy era of the 1950s.
The report states: “Through vague, vitriolic, and overbroad executive orders and other actions, the Trump Administration has attacked rights, ideas, and words it doesn’t agree with, justifying some edicts by claiming an intent to liberate Americans through a twisted and false version of ‘restoring free speech.’ ‘’
In a 26-page report, PEN America catalogues the administration’s executive orders and other actions that undermine rights core to democracy, saying: “The Trump Administration has betrayed the bedrock principle of our democracy — that you should be free to express your opinion without fear of punishment by the government. You should be free to say the emperor has no clothes.”
What: PEN America’s special report on the impact on free expression of the first 100 days of the Trump White House
When: Embargo lifts at 7 a.m. EST Tuesday, April 29
Where: www.PEN.org
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], (m) 201-247-5057 to receive the full report ahead of April 29 when the embargo lifts.
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.