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United States

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An activist holds a banner that reads 'We want to be free' during a rally in solidarity with Belarusian political prisoners, in Krakow, Poland, 3 July 2020, Artur Widak/NurPhoto

Members of US Congress speak out in support of the Belarusian people

In recognition of the International Day of Solidarity with Belarus, PEN America is sharing statements from members of the US Congress reminding the world that the struggle for free expression and democracy in Belarus has not been forgotten.

A U.S. Senator points to a newspaper article about a Supreme Court nominee before the Senate Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, DC, 12 October 2020, Demetrius Freeman - Pool/Getty Images

The old media and the new must work together to preserve free speech values

‘I urge us all to stay steadfast to our traditional distaste for government regulation of journalistic practice. Good journalism is certainly an ideal. It is an admirable quality to urge any media outlet to adopt and follow,” EFF Civil Liberties Director David Greene.

An employee at a cafe, which uses a unified biometric facial recognition system for payments, in Moscow, Russia, 25 March 2020, Gavriil GrigorovTASS via Getty Images

Why EFF doesn’t support bans on private use of face recognition

Instead of a prohibition on private use, EFF supports strict laws to ensure that each of us is empowered to choose if and by whom our faceprints may be collected.

Executive Director of PEN America Los Angeles Michelle Franke, CEO of PEN America Suzanne Nossel, Ai Weiwei and Jennifer Egan arrive at the PEN America 2018 LitFest Gala, Beverly Hills, California, 2 November 2018, Gregg DeGuire/WireImage

Reckoning and reconciliation after the Trump era

This episode of the PEN Pod segment “Tough Questions” addresses the activism we’ve all had to take up over the past four years, the priority issues the Biden-Harris administration should aim to resolve, and the importance of looking back at the Trump era in order to resolve the trauma we experienced from it.

Supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump fly a flag with a symbol from the group QAnon as they gather outside the U.S. Capitol on the day of the riot, Washington, DC., 6 January 2021, Win McNamee/Getty Images

Trump lit the fuse, but anti-media sentiment among his supporters may outlast him

Even with Trump now out of the White House – and banned from Twitter – animosity toward the press among some Trump supporters and far-right extremist groups is unlikely to diminish, reporters and researchers of extremism told CPJ.

A young woman consults her smartphone for the next address to visit while canvassing for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden before the general election, Landsdowne, Pennsylvania, 1 November 2020, Mark Makela/Getty Images

EFF’s top recommendations for the Biden administration

EFF prepared a transition memo for the incoming Biden administration, outlining their recommendations for how it should act to protect everyone’s civil liberties in a digital world.

Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, uses his gavel during a hearing titled "Financial Industry Regulation: the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency", Washington, DC, 13 June 2018, Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call

New OCC rule is a win in the fight against financial censorship

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency finalized its Fair Access to Financial Services rule, which will prevent banks from refusing to serve entire classes of customers that they find politically or morally unsavory.

A TV journalist reports outside the Capitol Building where US National Guard troops have been deployed, Washington, DC, 19 January 2021, Yegor AleyevTASS via Getty Images

Free expression and the first 100 days

An agenda for the incoming administration.

A TV reporter broadcasts in front of military vehicles near the U.S. Capitol, Washington, DC., 14 January 2021, Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images

CPJ safety advisory: Covering the build-up to the U.S. presidential inauguration

Tensions remain high in the U.S. in the build-up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20, 2021.

A Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) "Green" police officer stops a dump truck driver and hands him a ticket, New York, U.S., 26 May 2009, EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images

So-called “consent searches” harm our digital rights

Learn more about how the police evades the Fourth Amendment’s requirement to obtain a warrant.

A vigil in honour of journalist Jamal Khashoggi two years after his assassination, 22 October 2020, Prachatai/Amnistía Internacional Argentina, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

CPJ urges US court to reverse Khashoggi ruling, order US intelligence community to disclose information on documents related to duty to warn

The U.S. intelligence community should confirm or deny the existence of documents that may provide information on its duty to warn “Washington Post” columnist Jamal Khashoggi of threats to his life before his murder, or provide more detailed explanations of their refusal to do so.

Beyond platforms: Private censorship, Parler, and the stack

Private companies have strong legal rights under U.S. law to refuse to host or support speech they don’t like. But that refusal carries different risks when a group of companies comes together to ensure that certain speech or speakers are effectively taken offline altogether.

A burnt U.S. flag at the Capitol Hill riot, Washington, D.C., 9 January 2021, photographer Marco Verch, https://foto.wuestenigel.com/the-deadly-capitol-hill-riots/, Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

FAQs on free speech and the Capitol Hill insurrection

Last week’s lawless insurrection on Capitol Hill raised a series of questions about free speech, the First Amendment, and protest rights. Should presidents be banned from Twitter and Facebook? Should tech companies refuse to host social networks sites like Parler? What defines “hate speech” and “incitement”?

CPJ urges respect for United States press freedom, journalist safety

“We are gravely concerned by today’s attack on American institutions, including the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., where journalists as well as lawmakers are at risk”.

EFF to FinCEN: Stop pushing for more financial surveillance

EFF submitted comments to the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) opposing the agency’s proposal for new regulations of cryptocurrency transactions.

Oakland Privacy and the people of Vallejo prevail in the fight for surveillance accountability

In December, Solano Superior Court Judge Bradley Nelson upheld the gift of surveillance accountability that the California State legislature had provided state residents when they passed 2015’s Senate Bill 741 (Cal. Govt. Code § 53166).