Summer Lopez
@summerelopez
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Chief Program Officer, Free Expression @PENAmerica | former @USAID | human rights & democracy advocate | world traveler, feminist, U2 fan. Views my own.
Joined June 2009
We @PENamerica are remembering Baktash Abtin today and honoring his legacy. And continuing to call for an investigation into his death in custody in Iran. #FreedomToWrite
Three years ago, poet and #FreedomToWrite honoree Baktash Abtin died in custody in Iran. Unjustly imprisoned in Evin prison, he contracted Covid-19 for the second time. By the time Abtin was granted a medical furlough, he was so ill he could barely speak. https://t.co/EN4iLCe08B
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Driven by a staunch commitment to ensure all kids have access to books and literature, @TasslynM has been instrumental in mounting a national pushback to the recent rise in book bans. We're thrilled to see her honored with CBC's 1st-ever Free Speech Award!
publishersweekly.com
The Children’s Book Council and its charitable arm, Every Child a Reader, have decided to acknowledge the heroic efforts of those working to defend young people’s freedom to read, and are honoring...
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BREAKING: Nobel Peace Prize laureate and @PENamerica’s 2023 #FreedomToWrite honoree Narges Mohammadi has finally been granted a temporary reprieve from Evin prison in Iran to recover from surgery. Statement coming from the #FreeNarges Coalition shortly!
The Nobel Peace Laureate #NargesMohammadi is out on medical furlough. After weeks of delay following Narges Mohammadi’s painful bone surgery, the prosecutor finally approved lawyer Mostafa Nili’s request, granting her a 21 day suspension of sentence today. This is not sufficient!
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Four years ago today, Vietnamese authorities unjustly arrested author and journalist Pham Doan Trang. For her prolific writing and human rights advocacy, she was sentenced to 9 years in prison. We continue to call on Vietnam to immediately release Trang from prison. #FreeTrang
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🧵We are proud to stand with @RSF_inter @FrontLineHRD and @nargesfnd for the launch of the #FreeNarges Coalition at the Nobel Peace Conference in Oslo. Over 25 groups have joined to demand freedom for Narges Mohammadi. “We are all stronger working together,” says @karinkarlekar.
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Every parent, child, spouse, and loved one who joined me in the Oval Office today has been praying for this day for a long time. In just a few short hours when our fellow Americans return home, those prayers will be answered.
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PEN America is overwhelmingly relieved to hear news that @wsj reporter Evan Gershkovich and columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza will be released from their unjust imprisonment in Russia. We are overjoyed that they will return home to reunite with their families. https://t.co/aQc59Seg8o
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PEN America urges writers and their allies to share Sepideh Rashnu’s words. Speak out against the Iranian government’s unjust imprisonment of Sepideh and the dozens of writers who have been held in Iranian custody for their #FreedomToWrite. https://t.co/VZHaAQYVkG
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Happy birthday, Narges. We hope that next year you will be spending this special day with your family and loved ones in freedom. #FreeNarges On @nargesfnd birthday, share this video and write her a letter at: https://t.co/iOihPC83tN
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Again & again, I've heard from journalists abused online that what gets them through it is support-from family, friends, employers, but most importantly peers who share their background & lived experience. Read our new report w/ @JejeRMohamed & @SusanEMcG:
pen.org
We see industry-wide peer support as an especially important component of reducing the harms of online abuse in the journalism industry.
🧵Journalists should NOT have to face violent threats & hateful slurs alone. PEN America’s new report calls on the journalism industry to invest in spaces where reporters w/ shared backgrounds & experiences can come together to get the support they need:
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We celebrate Narges Mohammadi as the #NobelPeacePrize Laureate for her commitments to Freedom, Equality, and Justice for All. We remain steadfast in our call to #FreeNarges from her unjust imprisonment in Iran. ✅ Join us by posting #FreeNarges on #HumanRightsDay!
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#FreeNarges now! With nearly 300 signatories and counting, we’re a part of the global call to release writer-activist Narges Mohammadi ahead of the #NobelPeacePrize ceremony. Read our letter and add your name to join the petition at @PENamerica:
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As we mark the Day of the Imprisoned Writer, I'm thinking about Narges, Alaa, Galal, and all those writers imprisoned around the world for exercising their #freedomofexpression. Join us @PENamerica in speaking out on their behalf and defending the #freedomtowrite.
On the Day of the #ImprisonedWriter, PEN America joins @pen_int network to advocate for writers jailed for their words. Today, we’re calling on supporters of imprisoned writers worldwide to share their stories and defend their #FreedomToWrite.
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So pleased to welcome @kat12birdy to @PENamerica to lead our new Florida office!
PEN America announces the appointment of Katie Blankenship as its first-ever Florida director. She will lead an accelerated effort amid the crisis of censorship in Florida public schools and efforts to undermine academic freedom on college campuses.
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PEN America’s new report “Taming Culture in Georgia” details a troubling pattern of government interference with independent culture in the country. 20 years after the Rose Revolution, threats to culture are dire signals that hard-won rights are at risk.
pen.org
Taming Culture in Georgia examines the Georgian Ministry of Culture’s significant infringements on cultural rights and free expression.
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Please read this beautiful piece about Nobel Peace Prize and PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award winner Narges Mohammadi, written by my @PENamerica colleague @karinkarlekar and highlighting Narges's strength and perseverance. May it bring you a little hope in these dark times.
“Yesterday was one of the best and most glorious days in prison for all of us,” Narges Mohammadi said of winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Our work is not done to gain her freedom. https://t.co/9MoQEbeP2o
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I cannot imagine more inspiring news to wake up to. Narges Mohammadi is a heroic activist & writer who has endured such horrors, yet never stops fighting for the cause of women’s rights & human rights in Iran. And we @PENamerica will never stop fighting for her #FreedomtoWrite.
PEN America Applauds Nobel Peace Prize for Writer and Human Rights Activist Narges Mohammadi https://t.co/OsHZ22B92A
#NobelPrize #NobelPeacePrize 🧵
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🚨 NEW: 24 Bestselling Authors with Billions of Readers Are Banding Together To Fight Book Bans in Florida and Nationwide. "Unprecedented Mobilization" Includes @TheAmandaGorman @Connellybooks @judyblume @davidbaldacci @jodipicoult: https://t.co/uJh0J8LPlO
#BannedBooksWeek
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Really could not love this more. #BannedBooksWeek #ReadBannedBooks
Love books, ideas, education? Join @mandypatinkin and Kathryn Grody in speaking out against book banning. Join @penamerica @UAbookbans and @wginyc on Oct. 7 for the #BannedBooksWeek Day of Action and share your favorite banned book with the hashtag #LetFreedomRead.
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Very much looking forward to being part this event on AI and #freeexpression next week, hosted by @CFE_TMU. We'll be talking about @PENamerica's report on the topic, Speech in the Machine, among other things! Read it here: https://t.co/WJfpkdcxuW.
pen.org
Speech in the Machine notes the free expression issues at stake with generative AI, which has the potential to supercharge misinformation.
Join us virtually on Oct 3 at 4pm EDT when @summerelopez @heyitsseher @saliltripathi & @BJMcP will discuss What AI Will Mean for Free Expression? @mozilla @PENCanada @PENamerica @McMasterMPP @thecreativeschl
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