--- title: PEN Gala Honors 'Charlie Hebdo' Amid Uproar description: More than 200 writers had signed a letter of protest against the decision canonical: https://time.com/3848046/pen-gala-honors-charlie-hebdo/ author: Sarah Begley article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-06T02:41:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T10:06:15.000Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: PEN Gala Celebrates 'Charlie Hebdo' Amid Uproar og:description: More than 200 writers had signed a letter of protest against the decision og:url: https://time.com/3848046/pen-gala-honors-charlie-hebdo/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt41b88ef65f432aae/6987ee850b72e359d46e1e79/pen-charlie-hebdo.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Gerard Biard (L), editor-in-chief of the Paris-based satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, speaks before critic Jean-Baptiste Thoret (R) during the annual PEN American Center Literary Gala May 5, 2015 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: PEN Gala Celebrates 'Charlie Hebdo' Amid Uproar twitter:description: More than 200 writers had signed a letter of protest against the decision twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt41b88ef65f432aae/6987ee850b72e359d46e1e79/pen-charlie-hebdo.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # PEN Gala Honors _Charlie Hebdo_ Amid Uproar > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Sarah Begley](https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:06 AM UTCPublished: May 6, 2015 2:41 AM UTC  Gerard Biard, left, editor-in-chief of the Paris-based satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, speaks before critic Jean-Baptiste Thoret (R) during the annual PEN American Center Literary Gala May 5, 2015 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York Gerard Biard, left, editor-in-chief of the Paris-based satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, speaks before critic Jean-Baptiste Thoret (R) during the annual PEN American Center Literary Gala May 5, 2015 at the American Museum of Natural History in New YorkTimothy A. Clark—AFP/Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:06 AM UTCPublished: May 6, 2015 2:41 AM UTC The PEN American Center recognized _Charlie Hebdo_ with the 2015 Freedom of Expression Courage Award on Tuesday night. Six writers set to host tables at the ceremony pulled out in protest [last month](http://time.com/3836438/salman-rushdie-charlie-hebdo-pen/), citing their discomfort with the organization honoring a publication they saw as promoting “cultural intolerance.” More than [200 writers](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/05/books/charlie-hebdo-award-at-pen-gala-sparks-more-debate.html) and PEN members then signed a letter of protest siding with them, sparking a vigorous debate within the literary community about the limits of free speech. Extra [security](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/05/us-usa-islam-new-york-idUSKBN0NQ20L20150505) was present at the event, which took place in New York City at the Museum of Natural History, just two days after gunmen [opened fire](http://time.com/3844919/dallas-muhammad-cartoon-contest-gunmen-killed/) outside of a Garland, Tex., event showcasing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad. Six writers (including Neil Gaiman and Art Spiegelman) stepped in to fill the seats vacated by their dissenting peers (including Peter Carey and Rachel Kushner). “One can perhaps be castigated for failing to mention the elephant in the room,” said PEN American Center president Andrew Solomon in his opening remarks, “or in this case, the whale in the room,” referring to the [21,000-pound](http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/biodiversity-and-environmental-halls/milstein-hall-of-ocean-life/the-blue-whale) blue whale replica suspended over the guests. French Congolese novelist Alain Mabanckou, a presenter of the award, noted that he lost a close friend, Bernard Maris, in the Jan. 7 attack, noting “I miss him a lot tonight.” He also stressed the need to understand the specific cultural circumstances around _Charlie Hebdo’_s satire before criticizing it. Dominique Sopo, who leads an anti-racism organization in France called SOS Racisme, said that the newspaper is in fact an ally in the fight against racism, as it satirizes those who would commit violence against black, Jewish, Arab and Roma people in France. _Charlie Hebdo’_s editor-in-chief, Gérard Biard, accepted the award alongside Jean-Baptiste Thoret, a film critic. The two men kept the tone of their speeches fairly light, with Thoret joking that he’d like to know what Arnold Schwarzenegger thought of the first issue he received after [subscribing](http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jan/13/carlie-hebdo-gains-arnold-schwarzenegger-subscript/) in solidarity in January, while Biard said that secularism is “not an F-word. Nor is it a French cultural exception like smelly cheese or flabby presidents.” _New Yorker_ cartoon editor Bob Mankoff also took the stage to applaud the editors of _Charlie Hebdo_. “There was no way I was gonna back out because, well, frankly, I rented this tux,” he said. “Worth every penny. 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