The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire will recognize Constitution Day next Monday (Sept. 17) by hosting a discussion on “Free Speech, Hate Speech, & Speaking Out: Finding Your Voice in the Speech Debate.”
The program, scheduled for 5 p.m. in Room 1415 of Centennial Hall on UW-Eau Claire’s lower campus, is free and open to the public. Free parking is available in any university lot during this event.
Constitution Day is observed annually on Sept. 17, the date the 1787 Constitutional Convention adjourned, according to Associate Prof. Eric T. Kasper, director of UW-EC’s Center for Constitutional Studies.
“This year’s campus Constitution Day event focuses on the freedom of speech,” Kasper said. “Attendees will benefit greatly by learning which rights are protected by the First Amendment, what is not protected, and how to more effectively exercise the rights they have.”
A panel of UW-EC faculty and staff will discuss types of activity that are (and are not) protected by the freedom of expression. Panelists also will discuss how people can use speech effectively and engage in legal protest when responding to expression they find objectionable.
Panelists will include Kasper; History Prof. Selika Ducksworth-Lawton; and Christopher Jorgenson, director of the Gender and Sexuality Resources Center. The panel will be moderated by Joe Abhold, dean of students. Free pocket copies of the U.S. Constitution will be available during the event.
The Constitution Day program is sponsored by the university’s Center for Constitutional Studies, the Dean of Students Office and the Pre-Law Club. Funding for this event also comes from the UW-Stout Center for the Study of Institutions and Innovation.
More information is available from Kasper at 715-836-4802 or kasperet@uwec.edu.
Note: Norman Rockwell’s “Freedom of Speech” painting is part of his famous “Four Freedoms” series that illustrates the four essential human rights enumerated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in his January, 1941 State of the Union address.