PEN Canada Emergency Fund

PEN Canada receives multiple requests per year from imperiled writers who need urgent assistance. Meeting these requests for financial help is integral to our mission. The fund provides approximately $10,000 in aid annually. To date, the PEN Canada Emergency Fund has helped more than 200 writers to find safety.

This dedicated fund can be quickly mobilized to provide one-time emergency grants in three key areas:

Transportation for writers fleeing violence
Settlement and immigration costs
Medical expenses related to persecution

How to apply for assistance

Writers who face credible threats of violence due to their work can apply to PEN Canada for specific, one-time grants of up to $1,500.

An application form for PEN Canada’s Emergency Fund can be downloaded (Word Doc | PDF), filled and returned to PEN Canada at queries@pencanada.ca. Applications are independently reviewed and assessed according to the immediacy and seriousness of the threats faced.

Additional applications may be referred to other PEN centres or to the PEN Emergency Fund run by PEN International and PEN Netherlands.

Contribute to the fund

To donate to PEN Canada’s emergency fund, please complete the form below and click on the drop down menu to direct your donation to the Emergency Fund:

Testimonials

I currently reside in Canada, an exile who has fled harassment, discrimination, humiliation, persecution and censorship back in Kenya, my homeland, due to my sexuality and my art. Fortunately, my partner and I were able to obtain emergency assistance from PEN Canada. That assistance helped us start the long process of building new lives here in Canada, and we are grateful to PEN, and every person and foundation that enables it to help writers and artists like us.

Grace Munene, Kenyan activist and songwriter

Alternative resource: the PEN Emergency Fund

Established in 1971, the PEN Emergency Fund (PEF) offers discreet financial assistance to writers whose freedom of expression has been restricted by threats or harassment, particularly to those who face exile, imprisonment, or need urgent medical care.

The fund is supported by various organizations and PEN centres around the world. Working with a board of dedicated volunteers, the PEN Secretariat, and experienced investigators, the PEF minimizes overheads and bureaucracy to review applications and provide emergency funding as quickly as possible. In 2019 and 2020 alone, it successfully helped 65 individuals.

Learn more about this fund.