Friday, 04 December 2020

Let them know they are not forgotten

2020 has been a terrible year for the world.

Unfortunately, for some human rights activists, free speech supporters and journalists, 2020 is just another year they have spent in prison, incarcerated on trumped-up charges for speaking out against the actions of authoritarian regimes.

Join us in our year-end #JailedNotForgotten campaign by sending messages of support to six human rights activists and journalists from around the world.

Donate to Index on Censorship

Index launches report looking at the real-world effects of Slapps on journalists

Photo: Anh Nguyen/Unsplash

As 60 organisations come together to ask the EU to develop legislation to stop vexatious lawsuits, we have published a new report - Slapped down: Six journalists on the legal efforts to silence them - that includes the testimonies of reporters from across Europe, who have faced legal threats and actions as a result of their work.

Should we have to respect or just tolerate abhorrent views?

On Tuesday 8 December we will know the result of a ballot of academics at the University of Cambridge on the issue of free speech. As you would expect from an institution built on the principles of academic freedoms and intellectual curiosity there is a debate about the exact definition of what that is. Specifically, whether academics have to respect each other’s opinions or merely tolerate them. Read our CEO Ruth Smeeth's view on this question.

Vidal-Hall on 14 years at Index exposing censorship happening under our noses

Judith Vidal-Hall worked at Index as editor during one of the most pivotal eras in recent world history. In 1993 the Twin Towers still stood, the world wide web was in its infancy and South African apartheid continued to be enforced. By 2007 the political and social landscape had become almost unrecognisable. Under her stewardship, Index navigated this global metamorphosis, identifying those in power who obscured the truth, those who were being shut out of the narrative, and gave the “voiceless a voice”. Read about her time at the magazine here.

Index on Censorship defends people's freedom to express themselves without fear of harm or persecution. We publish censored writers and artists, monitor and campaign against censorship, and encourage debate.

We rely on donations from readers and supporters. By donating to Index you help us to protect freedom of expression and to support those who are denied that right.