The Contours of Free Expression on Campus: Rights and Responsibilities of Free Speech

Professor Frederick M. Lawrence, Distinguished Lecturer in Law, Georgetown University Law Center Secretary and CEO, The Phi Beta Kappa Society, will give a seminar on Wednesday, October 19: "The Contours of Free Expression on Campus: rights and responsibilities of free speech".

The challenge of free expression on our campuses has never seemed greater. These challenges come in all directions and all contexts: they come from the left and they come from the right. They involve students, they involve faculty, and they involve those outside the campus who affect the community as invited speakers. At this moment, it is especially important to clarify first principles pertaining to the core value of free expression as it manifests on campus.

This talk will address two such principles. First, robust free expression and free inquiry are central for the mission of colleges and universities. The limits of such expression are far out at the margins of expressive activity, involving behavior that threatens or instills fear in a victim or victims. Hate speech is protected; hate crimes are not. Second, hate speech, although protected, nonetheless causes harm to members of our communities, disproportionately so to those who are disempowered. There is a moral imperative for campus leaders to respond vigorously to hateful speech – not to suppress it, but to identify it for what it is and to criticize it. Finally, we will consider the challenges and risks of engaging in these responses.

By invitation only.