Václav Havel: A Pioneer of Cities of Asylum

Today we take a moment to remember the legacy of Václav Havel in the wake of his death a couple of weeks ago. Known as a "global champion of democratic virtues," in 1994 Havel, as President of the newly formed Czech Republic, formed the International Parliament of Writers (IPW) with Salman Rushdie, Jacques Derrida, and Wole Soyinka, among others. A playwright himself who had faced persecution under Czechoslovakia’s Soviet-controlled government, he was one of the founders of Charter 77, a Czech civic initiative to demand human rights and freedom of expression.

In 1994, inspired by the assassination of writers in Algeria, IPW was formed with the goal of providing a network of refuge cities for writers in danger. This later led to the establishment of the International Cities of Refuge Network (ICORN) and the Cities of Asylum in the United States, which include City of Asylum/Pittsburgh.

Continue reading this article at Sampsonia Way to learn more about Havel and to watch a video of a speech he delivered on the importance of fighting for human rights.