Buy a book: Interviewer Salman Rushdie suggests a way to support the seriously injured author

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Sunday that Salman Rushdie is “more than just a literary giant,” as the icon remained in critical condition after Friday’s stabbing attack. Blinken said Rushdie “consistently defended the universal rights to freedom of expression, freedom of religion or belief, and freedom of the press.” “Specifically, Iran’s state institutions have been inciting violence against Rushdie for generations, and the state media recently muttered about his assassination attempt. That’s despicable.”

Rushdie’s strength, Blinken said, “reinforces our resolve and underscores the imperative to stand united as an international community against those who would challenge these universal rights.”

There was already global rage In the aftermath of the Rushdie attack. President Biden said the author stands for “the ability to share ideas without fear.” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the attack as an “attack on global freedom of expression”.
On Sunday, Rushdi Zafar’s son He said that “Although his life-changing injuries were severe, his usual sense of humor, remains intact. We are very grateful to all members of the public who bravely jumped to his defense and provided first aid along with the police and doctors who took care of him and For the outpouring of love and support from all over the world.”
About “reliable sources”, I speak with Henry Reese, who was on stage with Rushdie when the attack happened. At first, he said, “It sounded like some kind of bad joke, and he had no sense of reality. And then when there was blood behind him, it got real.”
Reese said he didn’t want to talk about the details, or his injury (he had a bandage over his eye), but he definitely wanted to talk about protecting the book. That’s what the planned Friday event was all about. And that’s what Reese’s Organization Asylum city too. Described as “the world’s largest residency program for writers living in exile under threat of persecution,” the group advocates for the values ​​that Rushdie represents.

“We should all go out and buy a Salman Rushdie book this week and read it,” said Reese. He said writers should “write with the utmost sincerity and ability”. We should all recognize the importance of creative expression “and how it gets people to discuss important issues and think of people other than themselves.”

>> Randy Boyagoda made a similar point in this new piece for The Atlantic entitled To support Salman Rushdie, just read it.

“There is no such incident…”

via CNN a story: Press freedom group PEN America said the organization was “shocked and terrified” after Friday’s attack. “We cannot think of an incident comparable to a public attack on a literary writer on American soil,” Executive Director Susan Nossell said. Nossel said: “Salman Rushdie has been targeted for his words for decades, but he has not flinched or hesitated.” “He has devoted tireless energy to helping others who are vulnerable and at risk.” Nossel also said that hours before the attack, Rushdie emailed her a request for help finding safe haven “for Ukrainian writers who need a safe haven from the grave dangers they face…”

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“A man with a knife cannot silence a man with a pen,” New York Governor Kathy Hoshol told a crowd gathered at the Chautauqua Institute on Sunday.

“Criticisms made by some about the possible fall of security in Chutaokua are inconsistent with Rushdie’s sense of his work and himself,” Boyagoda added. “He has chosen to place freedom of speech and freedom of movement over fearsome alternatives…”
—Associated Press reporter Joshua Goodman, who is based in Miami, happened to be in Chautauqua with his family on Friday. He predicted “a quiet week away from the news. Instead, the news found him…
The Top Chef star and Rushdie’s ex-wife, Padma Lakshmi He said She is ‘relieved’ that the author ‘passes’: ‘He now hopes for a speedy recovery…’

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