Vanderbilt will hold second annual Free Speech Week Oct. 15–22

Vanderbilt will host its second annual Free Speech Week, Oct. 15-22, with a variety of events and guest speakers to foster and celebrate its commitment to civil discourse and freedom of expression across campus. Free Speech Week will feature three student debates, a lecture by American Civil Liberties Union President Deborah Archer, and the inaugural Global Free Speech Summit, a two-day symposium with renowned national and international guests advancing efforts for free speech around the globe.

"Vanderbilt's Free Speech Week emphasizes our university's enduring commitment to bringing diverse perspectives to campus, inviting our community to engage with complex and timely issues," Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. "We're proud to offer students opportunities to not only hear from experts, but join those conversations through several open forums in the spirit of civil discourse."

View this year's Free Speech Week programming below, and be sure to register to attend.

Vanderbilt College Republicans and College Democrats Debate: Trump vs. Harris

Oct. 15, 2024

Vanderbilt College Democrats and Vanderbilt College Republicans have collaborated with the Vanderbilt Political Reviewand the Vanderbilt Civil Discourse Lab to produce a debate series focused on the 2024 U.S. presidential election. The first debate will focus on the candidates, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Register Here

Global Free Speech Summit

Oct. 17-18, 2024

The Future of Free Speech and Vanderbilt University will host the inaugural Global Free Speech Summit on Oct. 17-18. Experts from academia, industry and civil society organizations will gather on the Vanderbilt campus to discuss the most pressing challenges threatening freedom of expression worldwide and identify impactful solutions to reinvigorate this fundamental freedom.

Register Here

Keynote Speakers

Vanderbilt Dialogues on Free Speech - An Intercollegiate Debate Competition

Oct. 19, 2024

This intercollegiate debate will feature schools from across the country in a present-and-defend debate competition. Student debate teams will focus on a policy solution to the question: How can the U.S. more effectively address political disinformation within the context of the First Amendment? This event is co-sponsored by Dialogue Vanderbilt, the Vanderbilt Civil Discourse Lab, the Future of Free Speech Project, and the Department of Communication Studies.

Vanderbilt Insight Debate - Restrictions on Speech

Oct. 21, 2024

This will be the third Insight Debate in the Dialogue Vanderbiltfall programming-an effort to model and encourage civil discourse on campus. This format of debate is open to the community, not just competitive debaters, and all who attend are invited to participate. The focus is on participating in shared inquiry and listening to opposing viewpoints, rather than on winning the argument. This Insight Debate will focus on the topic of whether universities should or should not disinvite controversial speakers because of student protests. It will be at the Central Library Community Room at 6 p.m. CT on Monday, Oct. 21.

Register Here

The Victor S. Johnson Lecture with Deborah Archer

Oct. 22, 2024

Deborah Archer, president of the American Civil Liberties Union, is a nationally recognized expert in civil rights, civil liberties and racial justice, and an award-winning teacher and legal scholar whose articles have appeared in leading law reviews and national publications. During a lunch-time lecture, Archer will share about her work with the ACLU and understanding generational shifts in increased or decreased support of free speech and freedom of expression. Archer will lecture at Flynn Auditorium at the Vanderbilt Law School on Tuesday, Oct. 22, at 12:10 p.m. CT.

Register Here

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