-
Freedom to Write Index 2022
Introduction In May of 2022, at the PEN America emergency writers congress, Salman Rushdie spoke about global threats to human rights and democracy, including Vladimir Putin’s assault on Ukraine, and said: “It has been said, I have said it myself, that the powerful may own the present but writers own the future, for it is […]
Continue reading -
IMPUNITY REIGNS – WRITERS RESIST, PEN INTERNATIONAL LAUNCHES ITS ANNUAL CASE LIST 2022
THE DEADLIEST YEAR FOR PRESS IN THE AMERICAS, AS MEXICO REMAINS ONE OF MOST LETHAL COUNTRIES FOR JOURNALISTS; A TRAGIC ONE FOR EUROPE, AS THE WAR AGAINST UKRAINE RAGES AND TURKEY AND BELARUS AMONG THE WORST JAILERS 21 March 2023 Read Here: the PEN Case List 2022 PROOF 4 1UP PEN International launches […]
Continue reading -
PEN International Women’s Day – March 8
International Women’s Day: Take Action for María Cristina Garrido Rodríguez (Cuba) To mark International Women’s Day 2023, PEN International features the case of Cuban poet and activist María Cristina Garrido Rodríguez, imprisoned since July 2021 for her criticism of the Cuban government, and for participating in the peaceful protests that saw thousands of Cubans […]
Continue reading -
New record number of journalists jailed worldwide A record total of 533 journalists are currently detained worldwide, according to the annual round-up of violence and abuses against journalists published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The number of those killed has increased again this year – to 57– while 65 journalists are being held hostage and […]
Continue reading -
Nominees 2022 RSF Prize
Here is the list of nominees for the 2022 RSF Prize. Fifteen journalists and media outlets from all over the world have been shortlisted for their outstanding and essential work in support of the freedom to inform. Here are the exceptional histories on their website. This year is the 30th edition of this prize. Thirty years […]
Continue reading -
The 88th PEN International Congress in Uppsala – Reports and Resolutions
Dear PEN Centres, At this time in history, PEN International is needed more than ever. Sadly, as Arthur Miller once stated, we won’t live long enough to see that noble day when our cherished organization won’t be needed anymore. But let us continue to strive with all our strength for this day to come and […]
Continue reading -
United Kingdom: Joint letter calling on Home Secretary not to extradite Julian Assange to the US
PEN International joins Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and 14 organisations – including English PEN, PEN Suisse Romand, PEN Sydney, Scottish PEN, Slovene PEN and Swedish PEN – in urging the new UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, to intervene in the US government’s request to extradite Wikileaks publisher Julian Assange. These groups, representing press freedom, free […]
Continue reading -
PEN International congratulates French author Annie Ernaux on winning this year’s Nobel Prize for Literature
06 October The 82-year-old writer from Normandy was awarded the prize for the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements and collective restraints of personal memory. Her autobiographical novels, including Cleaned Out and A Frozen Woman, explore notions of sexuality, social inequality, and class. While her non-fiction texts including A Man’s Place and Shame explore the depths of […]
Continue reading -
Witi Ihimaera on National Radio
Witi Ihimaera on National Radio This weekend the New Zealand Society of Authors will mark the 50th birthday of Witi Ihimaera’s groundbreaking collections of short stories, first published in 1972. Bryan Crump spoke to Witi July 26 ahead of the celebration. LISTEN HERE Link to Auckland roadshow information HERE
Continue reading -
Pen America at 100: A Reading List
This year is PEN America’s 100th anniversary, and to celebrate, we have a new reading list highlighting members of the organization who have produced some of the most influential works of the past century. What began in the aftermath of World War I as an American literary club with the intent of providing intellectual […]
Continue reading -
Pen International – Gender, Diversity and Literature: recording and handbook
PEN International held a Civil Society Programme training webinar on Gender, Diversity, and Literature in English. This webinar unpacks the concepts of gender, intersectionality, and diversity and presents the nature and impact of discrimination on girls and women writers through case studies. You can find the recording of the webinar in English HERE They […]
Continue reading -
The 2022 Emerging Voices Fellows – PEN America
Join us in welcoming the 2022 Emerging Voices Fellows—Natáhne Arrowsmith, S. Erin Batiste, Sarah Chaves, Julian Iralu, Iris Kim, Jane S. Kim, Monica Mills, Doreen Oliver, Connie Pertuz-Meza, Edythe Rodriguez, Shakeema Smalls, and Christina Tudor! These 12 writers were selected from the largest applicant pool in the 26-year history of the program, which is designed to […]
Continue reading