PEN Points: Writers and readers gather to support Salman Rushdie

Writers and readers gathered at the Stand With Salman rally

Photo credit: Jennifer Altman

One Week After Violent Attack, Authors Unite to Read Work of Salman Rushdie

In the wake of the brutal assault on Salman Rushdie, PEN America convened Stand With Salman, bringing his fellow writers and his readers to the steps of the New York Public Library and online from around the world. Supporters wished Rushdie well in his recovery and hailed his literary accomplishments and staunch defense of free expression in what PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel called an event of “solidarity and defiance, but also celebration.”

In New York, writers including Paul Auster, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Tina Brown, Francesco Clemente, Kiran Desai, Andrea Elliott, Jeffrey Eugenides, Amanda Foreman, A.M. Homes, Siri Hustvedt, Hari Kunzru, Aasif Mandvi, Colum McCann, Andrew Solomon, and Gay Talese read from Rushdie’s body of work and celebrated his undaunted courage and tireless advocacy on behalf of imperiled writers everywhere. Watch a recording of the livestream here.

America’s Censored Classrooms

Across the country, the freedom to learn is facing unprecedented threats. In our latest report, we analyze 137 educational gag orders introduced in 36 states so far this year, comparing them to the 54 gag order bills filed in 22 states in 2021 (a 250 percent increase). Another highlight: this year, most gag order bills have continued to target teaching about race, but a growing number have also targeted LGBTQ+ identities, with more and harsher punishments for schools and teachers. Read more.

India at 75

On August 15, India marked 75 years of its independence. To commemorate this occasion, PEN America collaborated with a group of writers to invite authors from India and the Indian diaspora to reflect on the state of free expression and democratic ideals. These 113 contributions comprise India at 75, a collection of original writings by Salman Rushdie (shared before the violent attack on him on Friday, Aug. 12), Jhumpa Lahiri, Abraham Verghese, Shobhaa De, Rajmohan Gandhi, Romila Thapar, Aakar Patel, Anita Desai, Geetanjali Shree, Perumal Murugan, P. Sainath, Kiran Desai, and Zia Jaffrey, among other notable writers. Read The Nation’s coverage of the collection.

U.S. Free Expression Stories

What’s actually being taught in history class
Schools across the country have been caught up in spirited debates over what students should learn about United States history. How have these debates affected the classroom?
THE NEW YORK TIMES

Cyber sleuths take aim at election disinformation
The security experts who have spent years exposing flaws in voting technology are still at it—but ongoing election conspiracy theories are forcing them to make changes.
POLITICO

Anne Frank adaptation, Bible, and more books pulled from Texas school district
Back in April, Laney Hawes thought she had saved a graphic novel adaptation of Anne Frank’s diary from being purged from a North Texas school district’s libraries and classrooms. But on Tuesday morning, a school official sent an email telling principals and librarians to pull it off the shelves—along with 40 other books. Read PEN America’s statement and read our report on the rise in book bans.
THE WASHINGTON POST

The Latest from PEN America

Bystander Intervention: How To Be An Ally When You Witness Online Abuse

Tuesday, Aug. 23 | 4pm ET
Digital Event

Join PEN America and Right to Be for a free virtual online abuse defense training. In this free, one-hour, interactive training, we’ll give you the tools you need to intervene safely and effectively in online abuse using Right To Be’s 5Ds of bystander intervention. If you’ve ever witnessed someone being abused online, wanted to step in, but had no idea what to do, register here.

Grave Concern for Poet Zhang Guiqi, Sentenced to Six Years in Prison, for Calling on Xi Jinping to Step Down

PEN America is gravely concerned by the recent court decision to sentence to six years the poet and member of the Independent Chinese PEN Centre (ICPC), Zhang Guiqi (張桂祺) who reportedly called on Xi Jinping to step down. “Zhang’s imprisonment is, unfortunately, another example of how the CCP has responded to peaceful criticism and dissent through a weaponized judicial system, a political regime of censorship and silencing, and draconian punishments,” said Liesl Gerntholtz, director of the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center. Read the full statement.

Global Free Expression Stories

Saudi woman given 34-year prison sentence for using Twitter
A Saudi student at Leeds University who had returned home to the kingdom for a holiday has been sentenced to 34 years in prison for having a Twitter account and for following and retweeting dissidents and activists. Read PEN America’s statement.
THE GUARDIAN

Nearly 30 activists plead guilty to “subversion” in Hong Kong security case
Hong Kong democracy activists Joshua Wong, Benny Tai and dozens of other defendants pleaded guilty to subversion charges brought under Hong Kong's draconian national security law after they took part in a democratic primary in the summer of 2020, local media reported.
RFA

Facebook misses election misinfo in Brazil ads
Facebook failed to detect blatant election-related misinformation in ads ahead of Brazil’s 2022 election, a new report from Global Witness has found, continuing a pattern of not catching material that violates its policies the group describes as “alarming.”
AP

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