PEN Canada emergency fund will help writers facing or escaping persecution
When writers around the world find themselves in danger, they know they can come to PEN centres for help. PEN Canada receives multiple requests per year from writers-in-peril who need assistance, and the number of requests is only increasing. On December 1st, PEN Canada will join the Canada-wide Giving Tuesday fundraising initiative to raise $10,000 for an official PEN Canada writers-in-peril emergency fund.
Until now, financial support for these writers have been allocated on an ad-hoc basis from PEN Canada’s general operating budget. With a dedicated fund, we can move faster to provide one-time emergency grants in three key areas:
- Transportation for writers fleeing violence
- Settlement and immigration costs
- Medical expenses related to persecution
Meeting requests for financial help is integral to the mission and vision of PEN Canada, and has allowed us help writers like Jiang Wei Ping and Sadiya Ahmad escape oppression. With a PEN Canada emergency fund, we can add to our advocacy work and aid writers when they need it most.
We’ll be sharing our emergency fund fundraiser on social media with the hashtag #PENCanadaHelps and #GivingTuesdayCA. Here’s how you can help as a PEN Canada member, patron or friend of PEN:
- TWEET and FACEBOOK our donation page on and in preparation for December 1st.
- FORWARD our upcoming member e-mail about Emergency Fund to your contacts.
- DONATE to the emergency fund. Every little bit helps towards our $10,000 goal and you will receive a tax receipt for your contribution!
Giving Tuesday (December 1st) is the opening day of the giving season where charities, companies and individuals join together to share commitments and rally around important causes.
