PEN Canada celebrates literature, defends freedom of expression and aids writers in peril.
“Free Speech is the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.” — Salman Rushdie PEN Canada, Penguin Random House Canada, Toronto International Festival of Authors and Writers’ Trust of Canada …
The Toronto International Festival of Authors, in partnership with PEN Canada and CBC Radio’s IDEAS, presents Nobel Peace prize laureate Maria Ressa (author of How to Stand Up to a Dictator, being released November 2022) in conversation with Citizen Lab founder Ronald Deibert on the topic of defending freedom of expression and human rights. Margaret Atwood will provide the introduction to the evening’s subject, one of the most critical challenges of our time: the link between disinformation and the decay of our democracies. Their conversation, moderated by CBC IDEAS’ Nahlah Ayed, will be the second annual PEN Canada Graeme Gibson talk, a series founded in 2021 to honour the legacy of renowned Canadian author and writers’ advocate, Graeme Gibson (1934-2019).
A Q&A with researcher Chris Tenove about the Global Reporting Centre’s study of online disinformation.
Arzu Yildiz is the recipient of the 2021 PEN Canada-Humber College Writers-in-Exile Scholarship, which provides peer mentorship to one member of PEN Canada’s Writers-in-Exile program each year.
Being a refugee is not easy but in spite of all the challenges, I feel safe from the shadow of death, which had been following me in my country, threatening my dreams and my life.
PEN emerged during a moment of postwar optimism regarding the potential of human fellowship to overcome the contingencies of geopolitical power.
Justin Brake has won the 2017 PEN Canada/Ken Filkow Prize. The $1,000 prize is awarded annually to an individual or group whose work has advanced freedom of expression in Canada.
Desmond Cole has won the 2017 PEN Canada/Ken Filkow Prize for freedom of expression in Canada.
Authors Margaret Atwood, Eugene Benson and Graeme Gibson brought PEN Canada to Toronto in 1984.
Kenneth J. Harvey’s thoughtful piece on the realities of his work as a minder, originally published in PEN Canada’s December 1994 newsletter.