Freedom of Expression at Writers’ Trust Events

Standard Practice: 

• Winning authors are encouraged to use their time at the podium as they choose. We give a standard acceptance speech length for guidance and affirm our belief in freedom of expression in advance.  
• We will ask security personnel who report to us to not remove writers from our events who peacefully express their views.  
• We will not tolerate hate speech or abusive language at our events. 

Guiding Principle: 

Writers’ Trust of Canada does not comment on global conflict, but we will support writers’ freedom of speech if they choose to express their views on our stages. Winning authors are encouraged to use their acceptance speech time as they choose, their voices are welcome and valued.  

For almost a half-century, Writers’ Trust has been delivering programs that support and celebrate writers and writing in Canada. By so doing, we have hoped to play a role in empowering the creative voices that help us to understand each other, and our times. Many voices and many views, all flourishing, freely speaking their hearts and minds: for us, this is the sign of a resilient society.   

The voices of writers help us contend with complexity, to reveal nuance, and to question the simplistic binaries that are so prevalent in the public square. When there is profound suffering, upset, and turmoil in our world and communities, we look to artists for insight and perspective, inspiration and dissent. Writers’ Trust is proud to do what we can to give authors in Canada opportunities to express how they experience the world, fully expecting these opinions to be divergent and wide-ranging. We support these writers and this essential work, knowing it to be foundational — like books themselves are foundational to how humans can connect.