Condemning Student Detentions
PEN America joined The Student Press Law Center and nine other free speech and journalism organizations to condemn the detention of Rumeysa Ozturk, reportedly based on opinions expressed in a student newspaper op-ed. The State Department revoked 300 or more student visas, many for students who attended pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses. (Read the letter)
Fighting Disinformation
Disinformation is a growing crisis for free expression. Our new report, Exploring How to Build Community-Level Resilience Against Disinformation, explains our novel approach: tackling a global problem by investing in local and regional initiatives, citizens, and communities. In three rapidly growing, diverse metropolitan areas, we trained people to recognize disinformation and have difficult conversations with who spread it. (Read the report)
South Carolina Could Lead Statewide Bans
South Carolina could still lead the nation in statewide book bans after the state Board of Education tabled a decision on 10 challenged books. . The titles are largely for young adult readers by women and LGBTQ+ authors that focus on diverse groups or difficult real-world topics. But the students of DAYLO are a ray of hope. (More on South Carolina) (Meet the students fighting back)
Journalist Safety Urgent Care Helpline Extension
In an increasingly hostile environment for the free press, the Journalist Safety Urgent Care Helpline has been extended through the first 100 Days of the Trump administration. PEN America has joined forces with leading safety experts and organizations to provide U.S. journalists and newsrooms with one-on-one and newsroom-wide safety consults for digital, physical, psychosocial, and legal safety concerns. To get help, email [email protected] with the word “SAFETY” in the subject line.
SOS for Museums and Libraries
The gutting of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the overhaul of the Smithsonian Institution to restore “truth and sanity to American history,” and threatened cuts for the National Endowment of the Arts all weaken our nation’s libraries and museums and continue the Trump administration’s attempt to reshape America’s culture and historic narrative. We call on Congress to ensure our cultural institutions remain strong, independent, and robustly funded. (Read the joint open letter)
Silencing Voice of America
The Trump Administration’s executive order gutting the U.S. Agency for Global Media leaves writers and journalists at risk around the world. PEN America is especially concerned about the journalists and writers working with Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty who were already in prison in Russian-occupied Crimea, Myanmar, and Vietnam – now stranded without external support. (Read about the writers)
Recommended Reading
When everything is terrible, read a book! We interviewed Nobel Prize winner Abdulrazak Gurnah and Booker Prize winner Geetanjali Shree about their new books, Theft and Our City That Year. We also spoke to Saou Ichikawa about the need for disabled voices in literature and Hunchback, the new translation of her Japanese novel by Polly Barton. For our Shelf Love series, Dylan Allen spoke about the liberating and transformative power of romance novels. (Read the interviews)
