Asma Laouira is the Writers at Risk senior manager for the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center at PEN America.
Asma Laouira
Senior Manager, Writers at Risk, PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center
Articles by Asma Laouira
“Culture in Gaza Is Not a Luxury”: Interviews With Palestinian Writers
As much of the world debates the future of Gaza, largely excluding Palestinian voices, writers in Gaza are speaking urgently about preserving memory, protecting culture, and safeguarding ownership of their land. In interviews with PEN America’s PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center, four Palestinian writers in Gaza reflected on the responsibility of telling their own story. Read more…
Prison for Poetry: Eight Years Behind Bars for Satire in Egypt
Galal El-Behairy’s case is, unfortunately, just one example of the human cost of silencing dissent in Egypt.
‘He Paid The Price for Opposition With The Best Years of His Life’: An Egyptian Poet Held in Indefinite Detention
“My voice betrays me and breaks inside. In my silence is my death. My dear country, how can I sing to you? If I saw my death for ONE song.”