For dissident writers fleeing persecution overseas, the United States has long been a safe haven, a place where freedom of expression is tolerated and, even, valued.
That suddenly changed earlier this month, with the brutal attack on author Salman Rushdie at a speaking event in western New York.
"Oh my God! When I heard that, I was screaming," said Masih Alinejad, a writer and activist who has criticized the Iranian government. "I was just running corner to corner in my safe house and shouting and just calling my husband, 'I cannot believe this is happening in America, in New York.''
