UC National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement
@ucfreespeech.bsky.social
The Center explores the intersection of expression, engagement & democratic learning and considers what can be done to restore trust in the value of free speech
https://freespeechcenter.universityofcalifornia.edu/
https://freespeechcenter.universityofcalifornia.edu/
Pinned
📢 Season 5 of the #SpeechMatters podcast starts now!
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
A panel of legal experts and a higher ed leader at the American Association of Colleges and Universities annual meeting urged colleges to “stand up” against violations of First Amendment rights and stifling of free speech on campuses. ⬇️
Higher Ed Urged to “Stand Up” to Government Attacks
A panel of legal experts and a higher ed leader called on colleges to form coalitions against violations of free speech on campus and to protect the values of higher education.
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February 5, 2026 at 4:04 PM
A panel of legal experts and a higher ed leader at the American Association of Colleges and Universities annual meeting urged colleges to “stand up” against violations of First Amendment rights and stifling of free speech on campuses. ⬇️
Four scholars discuss differing perspectives on the movement for viewpoint diversity in higher education. Read more in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
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February 4, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Four scholars discuss differing perspectives on the movement for viewpoint diversity in higher education. Read more in The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Where are universities in this moment of crisis? Read this op-ed on the huge influence colleges and universities hold in their communities — and why actions, not just words, matter now. ⬇️
In Times of Crisis, Actions Speak Louder Than Words
If colleges don’t resist the country’s social unraveling, who will?
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February 3, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Where are universities in this moment of crisis? Read this op-ed on the huge influence colleges and universities hold in their communities — and why actions, not just words, matter now. ⬇️
Texas A&M University canceled a graduate ethics course as part of an ongoing course review after the professor was not able to specify when and how race, gender and sexuality might come up in the class. 👇
Texas A&M Cancels Graduate Ethics Class in Course Review
Administrators say the professor teaching the course did not specify when and how race, gender and sexuality might come up in class. The professor says that would be impossible.
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February 2, 2026 at 4:05 PM
Texas A&M University canceled a graduate ethics course as part of an ongoing course review after the professor was not able to specify when and how race, gender and sexuality might come up in the class. 👇
Pen America released its newest report “America’s Censored Campuses 2025: Expanding the Web of Control.” Explore the findings.👇
Expanding the Web of Control
Government censorship of free speech and academic freedom has reached unprecedented heights on U.S. campuses as lawmakers extend a web of political and ideological control over the sector.
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January 29, 2026 at 4:03 PM
Pen America released its newest report “America’s Censored Campuses 2025: Expanding the Web of Control.” Explore the findings.👇
Read this op-ed on the silence of higher education after the killing of Renee Nicole Good and why the author argues universities need to speak up in the face of rising authoritarianism.
Opinion | Where’s the Outrage? Universities Need to Speak Up.
The lack of response to the killing of Renee Nicole Good is shameful.
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January 28, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Read this op-ed on the silence of higher education after the killing of Renee Nicole Good and why the author argues universities need to speak up in the face of rising authoritarianism.
Free expression advocates call on Trump administration to respect the public’s First Amendment right to document public officials and affirm that the First Amendment protects those who record and speak out. 🔗
Free Expression Advocates Call on Trump Administration to Respect Public’s First Amendment Right to Record - National Coalition Against Censorship
The strength of American democracy lies in one simple principle: the right to hold power accountable. Yet that principle is now under attack. The Trump Administration’s claim that recording…
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January 27, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Free expression advocates call on Trump administration to respect the public’s First Amendment right to document public officials and affirm that the First Amendment protects those who record and speak out. 🔗
National Advisory Board member Eugene Volokh discusses what kind of year 2025 was for free speech in Free Speech Unmuted. ⤵️
reason.com/volokh/2026/...
reason.com/volokh/2026/...
Free Speech Unmuted: 2025: The Year in Free Speech
What kind of year was 2025 for free speech? In this special year-in-review episode of Free Speech Unmuted, my cohost...
reason.com
January 26, 2026 at 4:05 PM
National Advisory Board member Eugene Volokh discusses what kind of year 2025 was for free speech in Free Speech Unmuted. ⤵️
reason.com/volokh/2026/...
reason.com/volokh/2026/...
National Advisory Board co-chairs Dean Chemerinsky and Chancellor Gillman discuss their book Campus Speech and Academic Freedom in this interview with Inside Higher Ed. 🔗
buff.ly/5lhU9tw
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode with the Center co-chairs here:
🎧 buff.ly/07dhz32
buff.ly/5lhU9tw
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode with the Center co-chairs here:
🎧 buff.ly/07dhz32
A How-To Guide for Handling Campus Speech Controversies
A lot has changed since Erwin Chemerinsky and Howard Gillman wrote Free Speech on Campus in 2017. They’re back with a second book that addresses student protest, classroom speech, event security and…
www.insidehighered.com
January 23, 2026 at 4:31 PM
National Advisory Board co-chairs Dean Chemerinsky and Chancellor Gillman discuss their book Campus Speech and Academic Freedom in this interview with Inside Higher Ed. 🔗
buff.ly/5lhU9tw
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode with the Center co-chairs here:
🎧 buff.ly/07dhz32
buff.ly/5lhU9tw
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode with the Center co-chairs here:
🎧 buff.ly/07dhz32
Higher education policy scholar Dominique J. Baker argues that the political oppression of the McCarthy era reverberates in current efforts to stifle free speech and academic freedom on campus. ⤵️
Censorship Arrives on Campus
In her debut column, “Echoes in the Quad,” higher education policy scholar Dominique J. Baker explores how the political oppression of the McCarthy era reverberates in the stifling of academic…
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January 22, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Higher education policy scholar Dominique J. Baker argues that the political oppression of the McCarthy era reverberates in current efforts to stifle free speech and academic freedom on campus. ⤵️
📢 Season 5 of the #SpeechMatters podcast starts now!
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
January 21, 2026 at 8:10 PM
📢 Season 5 of the #SpeechMatters podcast starts now!
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
Tune into the latest episode, “Campus Speech and Academic Freedom, A Guide for Difficult Times” with guest speakers and Center Co-chairs UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of Berkeley Law.
🎧 buff.ly/5yp9QFx
Tom Ginsburg, the faculty director of the Chicago Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression, discusses why academic freedom is so vital. Read more:
Free Expression in Higher Education: A Q&A with Tom Ginsburg | University of Chicago Law School
The ongoing debate about free expression in higher education has grown increasingly complex and contentious in recent years, shaped by a variety of societal and political factors that are…
buff.ly
January 21, 2026 at 4:03 PM
Tom Ginsburg, the faculty director of the Chicago Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression, discusses why academic freedom is so vital. Read more:
Texas A&M university administrators told a philosophy professor to cut some lessons on Plato to comply with new policies limiting discussion of race and gender.
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Texas A&M, Under New Curriculum Limits, Warns Professor Not to Teach Plato
The university is reviewing courses under new rules restricting teaching about race and gender. Administrators told a philosophy professor to cut some lessons on Plato to comply.
buff.ly
January 20, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Texas A&M university administrators told a philosophy professor to cut some lessons on Plato to comply with new policies limiting discussion of race and gender.
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🚨Tomorrow! Register for an online writing workshop, as part of UC Irvine’s first festival for ten-minute monologues. Free and open to all!
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
January 15, 2026 at 8:01 PM
🚨Tomorrow! Register for an online writing workshop, as part of UC Irvine’s first festival for ten-minute monologues. Free and open to all!
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
Former fellow Brian Soucek urges institutional leaders to stand up for their missions in his new book. Read more in his interview with Inside Higher Ed here:
buff.ly/ppulnKQ
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode ft. Brian here:
🎧 buff.ly/vuwUc8j
buff.ly/ppulnKQ
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode ft. Brian here:
🎧 buff.ly/vuwUc8j
Universities Must Stop Hiding Behind Neutrality Pledges
In his new book, The Opinionated University, Brian Soucek urges institutional leaders to stand up for their missions amid political controversy.
buff.ly
January 15, 2026 at 4:03 PM
Former fellow Brian Soucek urges institutional leaders to stand up for their missions in his new book. Read more in his interview with Inside Higher Ed here:
buff.ly/ppulnKQ
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode ft. Brian here:
🎧 buff.ly/vuwUc8j
buff.ly/ppulnKQ
ICYMI: Tune into the latest SpeechMatters podcast episode ft. Brian here:
🎧 buff.ly/vuwUc8j
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression’s 2026 College Free Speech Rankings display a data-driven look at where campus free speech is flourishing and where it is failing.👇
2026 College Free Speech Rankings
The sixth annual College Free Speech Rankings show a continued decline in support for free speech among all students, but particularly conservatives.
buff.ly
January 14, 2026 at 4:03 PM
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression’s 2026 College Free Speech Rankings display a data-driven look at where campus free speech is flourishing and where it is failing.👇
Are Harvard and other universities now facing a new campus orthodoxy that leads them to police speech under federal pressure? Read more in this op-ed.👇
Opinion | At Harvard and Elsewhere, the New Campus Orthodoxy Is Even More Stifling
Wasn’t this supposed to be the golden era of free expression on college campuses?
buff.ly
January 13, 2026 at 4:04 PM
Are Harvard and other universities now facing a new campus orthodoxy that leads them to police speech under federal pressure? Read more in this op-ed.👇
Register today for an online writing workshop, as part of UC Irvine’s first festival for ten-minute monologues. Free and open to all!
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
January 7, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Register today for an online writing workshop, as part of UC Irvine’s first festival for ten-minute monologues. Free and open to all!
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
📅 Fri, Jan 16, 4-7 PM PT
🔗 buff.ly/J5VJdlt
We are pleased to share our 2025 annual report, which highlights our work and impact over the past year.
Download it today. ⤵️
Download it today. ⤵️
2025 Annual Report
2025 Annual Report
buff.ly
January 7, 2026 at 7:00 PM
We are pleased to share our 2025 annual report, which highlights our work and impact over the past year.
Download it today. ⤵️
Download it today. ⤵️
Former fellow Brian Soucek writes about institutional neutrality. Read more in this op-ed. ⤵️
buff.ly
January 7, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Former fellow Brian Soucek writes about institutional neutrality. Read more in this op-ed. ⤵️
Track university civics centers across the US with Heterodox Academy to assess their impact on viewpoint diversity here:
Civics Centers — Heterodox Academy
The last few years have seen the proliferation of centers for civic thought at colleges and universities in the United States.
buff.ly
January 6, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Track university civics centers across the US with Heterodox Academy to assess their impact on viewpoint diversity here:
Happy National Day of Dialogue! National Day of Dialogue is an annual event held on January 5th to promote open dialogue.
Learn how you can observe National Day of Dialogue here👇
Learn how you can observe National Day of Dialogue here👇
National Day of Dialogue
National Day of Dialogue encourages open dialogue in order to build a more empathetic future.
buff.ly
January 5, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Happy National Day of Dialogue! National Day of Dialogue is an annual event held on January 5th to promote open dialogue.
Learn how you can observe National Day of Dialogue here👇
Learn how you can observe National Day of Dialogue here👇
Explore the top First Amendment stories of 2025 ⤵️
First Amendment Stories of 2025: A Year in Review
From Supreme Court First Amendment rulings to the "No Kings" protests, we take a look at some of the biggest First Amendment stories of 2025.
buff.ly
December 23, 2025 at 8:02 PM
Explore the top First Amendment stories of 2025 ⤵️
How do you facilitate deliberate dialogue in the classroom? Dive into expert insights into how to integrate challenging conversations in this article. 📑
Facilitating Deliberative Dialogue in College Classrooms
A panel of experts provide insights into how to integrate challenging conversations into class activities to build students’ interpersonal skills and critical thinking.
buff.ly
December 23, 2025 at 4:02 PM
How do you facilitate deliberate dialogue in the classroom? Dive into expert insights into how to integrate challenging conversations in this article. 📑
The University of North Carolina system will require faculty to post their syllabi publicly with some citing academic freedom concerns.👇
At UNC, Professors Must Soon Post Syllabi Publicly
The UNC system president cited low trust in higher education as justification for the new policy, which echoes rules in Florida and Texas. Faculty are fighting the decision.
buff.ly
December 22, 2025 at 8:01 PM
The University of North Carolina system will require faculty to post their syllabi publicly with some citing academic freedom concerns.👇