Press Releases
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PEN America Statement Regarding the 2024 Literary Awards Ceremony and Conferral of Annual Prizes
“We greatly respect that writers have followed their consciences, whether they chose to remain as nominees in their respective categories or not,” said Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf. “We regret that… More
Legal Filing by PEN America Urges Appeals Court to Uphold Injunction Against Iowa’s Book Ban Law
Katie Blankenship, director of PEN America’s Florida office, said: “Under the guise of protecting children from so-called age-inappropriate content, laws like SF496 are a smokescreen for censorship of constitutionally-protected… More
PEN America Lauds Resolution in Congress Marking April as “Preserving and Protecting Local News Month”
“Throughout our nation’s history, local news has been a bulwark for holding power to account and advancing a pluralistic democracy that represents and includes all, irrespective of their background… More
Response to Prism Reports Article Raising Concern Over Cash Prize Money Delays for Prize-Winning Incarcerated Writers
As a long-term course correction, PJW has already created an internal audit system to double check to ensure all payments that go out each month are received by the… More
PEN America: USC Decision to Cancel Valedictorian’s Graduation Speech Amounts to “Heckler’s Veto”
PEN America’s Kristen Shahverdian, program director for Campus Free Speech, said: “This amounts to a heckler’s veto – this student should have been given the opportunity to give the… More
New Report Finds Unprecedented Surge in School Books Bans
“Students are at the epicenter of the book banning movement, and they’re fearlessly spearheading the fight against this insidious encroachment into what they can read and learn across the… More
Letter from Salman Rushdie and Past PEN America Presidents: ‘Keep Faith in the Community That We Have Built Together’
After PEN America announced its plans for its upcoming PEN America Literary Awards and the 2024 PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature, nine former PEN America presidents came… More
Tony Kushner to Receive PEN/Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award at April 29 Literary Awards
Tony Kushner said, “It’s intimidating enough that this honor is named after Mike Nichols, no one ever understood better than him the ways words can be made to perform.… More
Pham Doan Trang, Imprisoned Vietnamese Writer and Dissident, To Receive PEN America’s Freedom to Write Award at NYC Gala May 16
PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel said: “Pham Doan Trang has galvanized the Vietnamese people through her writings on democracy, human rights, environmental degradation, and women’s empowerment. The Vietnamese government… More
PEN World Voices Festival Marks Its 20th Year
PEN America will convene an array of vital voices in literature from around the globe in the 20th anniversary PEN World Voices Festival, held May 8-11 in New York… More