1127 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
2023 Freedom of Thought Conference
June 28, 2023REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED.
We will not be accepting walk-ins.
State Power Review:
Considering the Role of States in
Preserving Freedom
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
9:00 AM - 6:15 PM EST
Where:
The Mayflower Hotel
1127 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
When:
Wednesday, June 28th, 2023
9:00 AM – 6:15 PM EST
Cost:
Conference Only - Free
Conference & CLE (Members) - $50
Conference & CLE (Non-Members) - $100
Panels:
Panel 1
When Twitter Speaks: Control, Access, and the Role of States: Texas and Florida both recently adopted statutes that regulate content moderation by social media platforms. The statutes have been challenged in the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits, raising questions of how to balance the dominant communication networks’ right to exclude users and control their networks against the ability of states to require non-discriminatory treatment. To what extent is content moderation speech or expressive conduct, how should the states’ power to regulate common carriers affect the constitutional analysis, and how is the Supreme Court likely to resolve these questions?
This panel will focus on the disagreement within the right we see in the competing analytical approaches from the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits.
Panel 2
Corporate Power and State Power: Structural Protections for Liberty: We recognize the dangers of public power and are familiar with how structural protections of the Constitution can protect against concentrations of power. But as banking and other institutions align to shape firm behavior on contentious policy questions, should we be concerned that private economic power is creating private regulatory order outside of the democratic process? And if so, should states be engaged in countering such concentrations of private power?
Panel 3
Corporate Speech and the First Amendment: How does the First Amendment apply to corporations? Do First Amendment interests and protections apply in the same way for non-profit corporations, closely held corporations, corporations formed for expressive purposes, and publicly traded for-profit corporations? What was the founding era understanding of corporate rights and of state power to protect individual rights, and how might that inform our thinking on state efforts to protect speech and conscience freedoms of employees and other private citizens?This panel will explore the diversity of opinion on the right about corporate speech.
Panel 4
Academic Freedom in Higher Education: The Role of States Defending Freedom of Thought: What policies and practices can states adopt to encourage freedom of thought within higher education? Do state efforts to put constraints on curricula, bar DEI-focused administrators, and limit faculty control of tenure decisions advance or hinder the cause of academic freedom? When claims to academic freedom collide, whose freedoms should the state preserve?
Confirmed Speakers:
Confirmed Moderators:
Register at the link above.
Back to topState Power Review Conference
Texas and Florida both recently adopted statutes that regulate content moderation by social media platforms. The statutes have been challenged in the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits, raising questions of how to balance the dominant communication networks’ right to exclude users and control their networks against the ability of states to require non-discriminatory treatment. To what extent is content moderation speech or expressive conduct, how should the states’ power to regulate common carriers affect the constitutional analysis, and how is the Supreme Court likely to resolve these questions?
This panel will focus on the disagreement within the right we see in the competing analytical approaches from the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits.
Featuring:
State Power Review Conference
We recognize the dangers of public power and are familiar with how structural protections of the Constitution can protect against concentrations of power. But as banking and other institutions align to shape firm behavior on contentious policy questions, should we be concerned that private economic power is creating private regulatory order outside of the democratic process? And if so, should states be engaged in countering such concentrations of private power?
Featuring:
State Power Review Conference
State Power Review Conference
Featuring:
State Power Review Conference
How does the First Amendment apply to corporations? Do First Amendment interests and protections apply in the same way for non-profit corporations, closely held corporations, corporations formed for expressive purposes, and publicly traded for-profit corporations? What was the founding era understanding of corporate rights and of state power to protect individual rights, and how might that inform our thinking on state efforts to protect speech and conscience freedoms of employees and other private citizens?
Featuring:
State Power Review Conference
What policies and practices can states adopt to encourage freedom of thought within higher education? Do state efforts to put constraints on curricula, bar DEI-focused administrators, and limit faculty control of tenure decisions advance or hinder the cause of academic freedom? When claims to academic freedom collide, whose freedoms should the state preserve?
Featuring:
State Power Review Conference