Connections

Booker novelists have expressed outrage at Turkey's charges against author Orhan Pamuk of "public denigration of Turkish identity" for his statements about the Armenian genocide. Turkey has actually updated its penal code regarding freedom of speech in recent years to bolster its attempt to join the EU, but this charge will likely hurt them in their application.

Connections:

I live in a town in which I've been told the largest concentration of Armenians outside Armenia itself reside. There's an Armenian library in town and the anniversary of the genocide is commemorated here.

I read lots of Booker Prize winners and I value freedom of speech for everyone (even if I don't agree with what is being said - which isn't the case this time).

The first advanced writing course I taught was to international business majors, one of whom wrote about Turkey's bid to enter the EU... so I actually know a little about it, and it doesn't look like much has changed from when this student wrote about it two years ago.