Ithaca City of Asylum
Providing refuge for persecuted writers and artists since 2001
Category: free speech
Afghan filmmaker opens eyes and touches hearts during Ithaca visit
Filmmaker Sahraa Karimi, the first female chair of the Afghan Film Organization who fled when the Taliban seized power in 2021, spent three days in Ithaca as a guest of Ithaca City of Asylum.
Read MoreVideo now available for Ramírez-Molina conversation
“Truth, Lies, and Literature: Sergio Ramírez and Pedro X. Molina in Conversation” featured the Nicaraguan author and political figure in dialogue with the celebrated cartoonist and former ICOA artist-in-residence.
Read MoreProminent Nicaraguan dissidents to discuss literature, art, and power
Novelist Sergio Ramirez and cartoonist Pedro X. Molina will explore the power and limits of fiction and other forms of creative expression in an online event on Sunday, October 15, at 2 pm EDT.
Read MorePedro Molina wins Havel human rights prize
Molina, who came to Ithaca as a guest of ICOA in 2018, has been awarded the Human Rights Foundation’s Vaclav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent.
Read MoreRemembering Russell Banks
The novelist Russell Banks died on January 7, 2023. Henry Reese, co-founder of City of Asylum Pittsburgh, remembers him as a central figure in the City of Asylum movement.
Read MoreICOA condemns Rushdie attack
In a statement, the board of directors of Ithaca City of Asylum expresses its outrage and solidarity in the wake of the August 12 stabbing of author Salman Rushdie and human rights advocate Henry Reese.
Read MoreSept. 23: DISSIDENCE: Exiled writers on resistance and risk
City of Asylum writers in residence in Ithaca, Pittsburgh, and Detroit will share their experiences in “DISSIDENCE: Exiled Writers on Resistance and Risk” on Friday, September 23, 7 p.m. at the Community School of Music and Arts. Timed for Banned Books Week, the event also celebrates ICOA’s 20th birthday.
Read MorePodcast features asylum cities movement
The latest episode of the Peace Talks Radio public radio show and podcast looks at the cities of asylum movement. ICOA board member Jonathan Miller interviews former ICOA artist-in-residence Pedro X. Molina, City of Asylum Pittsburgh co-founder Henry Reese, and International Cities of Refuge Network program director Elisabeth Dyvik.
Read MoreSolidarity in times of crisis
We send you greetings in this time of collective isolation. We hope that you are healthy, safe, and supported by family and friends. Like many of you, we have been asking ourselves what we can do to pitch in, both…
Read MorePEN America launches free speech campaign
PEN America, an important partner of Ithaca City of Asylum, has launched a campaign called Free Speech 2020 to “catalyze action across the country to defend press freedom, fight online harassment, combat disinformation, and uphold protest rights.” The initiative seeks…
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