PEN International [SEP] inception
PEN International
PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association has autonomous International PEN centers in over 100 countries.
Other goals included: to emphasise the role of literature in the development of mutual understanding and world culture; to fight for freedom of expression; and to act as a powerful voice on behalf of writers harassed, imprisoned and sometimes killed for their views.
History
Equal Opportunity Community Award for its work with asylum seeker writers held in Australian detention centres.
History.
Sydney PEN was founded in 1931 by Ethel Turner, Mary Gilmore, and Dorothea Mackellar. Since inception, it has conducted campaigns and events supporting literature, fostering international understanding and defending freedom of expression.
Sydney PEN Campaigns.
In 2008, Sydney PEN, together with International Pen, helped to release 94 writers from prison.
Its Writers in Prison program selects urgent regional cases that feature public advocacy campaigns.