October 3, 2018

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                   
October 3, 2018                                                                     

University of Alaska to host public forum on free speech
Event features renowned author Erwin Chemerinsky and UAA debate team

ANCHORAGE—As part of an ongoing focus on freedom of expression on campus, the University of Alaska, along with renowned scholar Erwin Chemerinsky, will dive into this timely issue on Friday, Oct. 12. Chemerinsky, widely recognized as a national expert on free speech and author of the book “Free Speech on Campus,” will address whether or not there is a free speech crisis on America’s college campuses. The free public forum will include UAA’s nationally-recognized Seawolf debate team, a panel discussion and an interactive audience question and answer session.

“The conversation surrounding freedom of expression on campus is a topic the whole country is weighing in on, and one that should interest us all,” said University of Alaska President Jim Johnsen. “We are honored to host one of the nation’s top thought leaders on this topic and I am looking forward to the insights that Dean Chemerinsky and our noteworthy panelists will share with our students, our faculty and our community.”

The forum begins at 11 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 12. at the UAA Fine Arts Building, Recital Hall 150. The full event schedule includes:

11 a.m. – Introduction on Campus Free Speech by UA President Jim Johnsen

11:15 a.m. – UAA Seawolf Debate Team members debate whether “The future of democracy depends on limiting free speech”

12 p.m. – Keynote Presentation by Erwin Chemerinsky, author of “Free Speech on Campus” and Dean of Berkeley Law School

12:45 p.m. – Moderated panel response with audience Q&A

This academic year, UAA, UAF and UAS are holding workshops, discussions and forums on the topic of freedom of expression. A calendar of those events can be found at www.alaska.edu/freespeech.

For this event, UA will provide a livestream broadcast for anyone who cannot attend in person on its website at www.alaska.edu/freespeech. The University of Alaska Fairbanks will broadcast the forum in the multilevel lounge of the Wood Center; the University of Alaska Southeast will broadcast it from the Egan Library, Room 104.

Chemerinsky, Dean of the Berkeley Law School, is a distinguished professor and author and has been named the most influential person in the country in legal education by National Jurist magazine.

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For more information, contact Roberta Graham, associate vice president of public affairs at 907-360-2416 (cell).

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