Restoring Rights: The Way Forward

Since 2004, PEN has worked tirelessly to defend freedom of expression in the face of post-9/11 anti-terrorism and national security policies. We’ve worked to end torture, to rein in government surveillance, and to challenge secrecy and restrictions that prohibit the free flow of information and ideas.

But with the advent of a new administration, PEN is doubling its efforts. If the American people are to move forward successfully, we must not only end the abuses, but also develop a fuller accounting of what has happened—what we’ve tolerated and what we've encouraged. PEN and its members are committed to advancing this process. We believe that curbing post-9/11 abuses and fostering national discussion is the only way we can ensure democratic governance and restore America’s moral standing in the world.

Ending Torture:
Writers and Lawyers on the Way Forward

With: Jane Mayer, Anouar Benmalek, Elisa Massimino, and Scott Horton; moderated by Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick

>> Listen

The Blindfold's Eyes
by Sister Dianna Ortiz
read by Dave Eggers

"Hope" by Ariel Dorfman
by Ariel Dorfman
read by Walter Mosely

Administration of Torture
an audio slideshow by the ACLU and PEN


Edward Albee on Federico Garcia Lorca

James Risen & Philip Gourevitch
in conversation

Journey to Hell
by Mourad Benchellali; read by Antoine Audouard

The U.S. Senate has acknowledged that the U.S. has engaged in torture. These links point toward the mounting body of evidence.

>> First-Hand Accounts

>> Official Documents

>> Investigations

>> Hearings

Write a letter to President Elect Obama urging him to end torture and other due process violations and press for a public investigation into past abuses.

>> Sample letter