PEN Oakland is a branch of

PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity whic ...

, an international literary and human rights organization. PEN Oakland was founded in 1989 by

Ishmael Reed Ishmael Scott Reed (born February 22, 1938) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, composer, playwright, editor and publisher known for his satirical works challenging American political culture. Perhaps his best-known work is '' M ...

and co-founders Floyd Salas, Claire Ortalda and Reginald Lockett. PEN Oakland annually sponsors the

PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award The PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award is for U.S. multicultural writers, to "promote works of excellence by writers of all cultural and racial backgrounds and to educate both the public and the media as to the nature of multicultural work. ...

, named for the late poet and faculty member of

U.C. Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

’s English Department. The award honors well-known and emerging Bay Area and international authors for excellence in multicultural literature. Past and present PEN Oakland board members include:

Elmaz Abinader Elmaz Abinader (born 1954 in Pennsylvania) is an American author, poet, performer, English professor at Mills College and co-founder of the Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation, Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation (VONA). She is of Lebanon, Leb ...

Opal Palmer Adisa Opal Palmer Adisa (born 6 November 1954) is a Jamaica-born award-winning poet, novelist, performance artist and educator. Anthologized in more than 400 publications, she has been a regular performer of her work internationally. Professor Emeritu ...

Kim Addonizio Kim Addonizio (July 31, 1954) is an American poet and novelist. Life Addonizio was born in Washington, D.C., United States. She is the daughter of tennis champion Pauline Betz and sports writer Bob Addie (born Addonizio). She briefly attended ...

Robert Mailer Anderson Robert Mailer Anderson (born 1968) is an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, Grammy-nominated producer and activist. He is the author of the bestselling novel '' Boonville'', which takes place in the Northern California town of Boonvil ...

, Jesse Beagle, Judith Cody,

Lucha Corpi Lucha Corpi is a Chicana poet and mystery writer. She was born on April 13, 1945 in Jaltipan, Veracruz, Mexico. In 1975 she earned a B.A. in comparative literature from the University of California, Berkeley. In 1979 she earned a M.A. in compar ...

, Nicole Corrales, John Curl,

Lucille Lang Day Lucille Lang Day (born December 5, 1947) is an American poet, writer, and science and health educator. Day has authored or edited 20 books and is a contributor to over 50 anthologies. She is best known as a poet and writer for her award-winning me ...

, Sharon Doubiago, Cheryl Fabio, Adelle Foley, Jack Foley, Andrew Phillip Hayes, Herbert R. Kohl, Reginald Lockett, Kirk Lumpkin, Kim McMillon,

Gerald Nicosia Gerald Nicosia (born November 18, 1949, in Berwyn, Illinois) is an American author, poet, journalist, interviewer, and literary critic. He is based in Knoxville, Tennessee. About Nicosia received a B.A. and an M.A. in English and American Lite ...

, Linda Noel, Claire Ortalda,

, Tennessee Reed, Tony R. Rodriguez, Floyd Salas,

Nina Serrano Nina Serrano (born 1934) is an American poet, writer, storyteller, and independent media producer who lives in Vallejo, California. She is the author of ''Heart Songs: The Collected Poems of Nina Serrano'' (1980) and ''Pass it on!: How to sta ...

Ntozake Shange Ntozake Shange ( ;
FilmReference.com. Retrieved October 27, 2018. October 18, 1948 – October 27, 2018) ...

Gary Soto Gary Anthony Soto (born April 12, 1952) is an American poet, novelist, and memoirist. Life and career Soto was born to Mexican-American parents Manuel (1910–1957) and Angie Soto (1924-). In his youth, he worked in the fields of the San Joaqui ...

Al Young Albert James Young (May 31, 1939 – April 17, 2021) was an American poet, novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and professor. He was named Poet Laureate of California by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2005 to 2008. Young's many books include ...

, and

Maw Shein Win Maw Shein Win is a Burmese American poet who lives and teaches in the San Francisco Bay Area. She served as the inaugural Poet laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring instit ...

. PEN Oakland is based in Oakland, California.

References

;Footnotes ;Sources *{{cite web, title=Oakland PEN Writing Awards Honor Paul Krassner, Local Writers, url=http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2010-12-15/article/36969?headline=Oakland-PEN-Writing-Awards-Honor-Paul-Krassner-Local-Writers--By-Gar-Smith, website=The Berkeley Daily Planet, accessdate=10 February 2017

External links

PEN Oakland
1989 establishments in California Organizations established in 1989 *