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PEN PRESIDENT SALMAN RUSHDIE PAYS TRIBUTE TO SUSAN SONTAG
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New York, New York
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Salman Rushdie, President of PEN American Center, issued the following
statement this afternoon about the death of Susan Sontag.
"Susan Sontag was a great literary artist, a fearless and original
thinker, ever valiant for truth, and an indefatigable ally in many
struggles. She set a standard of intellectual rigor to which I and her
many other admirers continue to aspire, insisting that with literary
talent came an obligation to speak out on the great issues of the day,
and above all to defend the sovereignty of the creative mind and
imagination against every kind of tyranny.
"She was president of PEN American Center from 1987 through 1989 and,
following Norman Mailer, helped to complete the transformation of a
writers' club into a professional nonprofit organization dedicated to
the advancement of literature and the defense of free expression, and
to the international fellowship of letters.
"She was a true friend in need. After the 1989 Khomeini fatwa against
the author, publishers, and translators of The Satanic Verses , she led
PEN in that battle for freedom of thought. Her resolute support, at a
time when some wavered, helped to turn the tide against what she called
'an act of terrorism against the life of the mind.' I will always
remember her determination with gratitude and admiration.
"Over the next fifteen years, Susan remained an active and stalwart PEN
member and supporter, taking leading positions on a host of issues and
traveling to many countries in defense of persecuted writers. She was
particularly emphatic about the urgency of opposing American cultural
parochialism and indifference to writing and ideas from abroad.
An extraordinary champion of new writers from other countries and of
literature in translation, she helped to introduce authors as diverse
as Danilo Kis, W. G. Sebald, and Orhan Pamuk.
"PEN's debt to Susan Sontag is apparent from the fact that in
opposition to this American cultural tendency that she deplored, we are
now planning a major gathering of international writers in New York for
next April. I am sure that when we open this event, we will
remember with profound gratitude the example of literary conscience
that she so stirringly embodied.
"For the moment, we all mourn the passing of one of America's
pre-eminent artists, and I myself mourn the loss of a dear and beloved
friend."
Click here to read work by Susan Sontag in Issue 6 of the PEN journal.
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