National First Amendment Summit

Wednesday, September 13 | Reception: 4–5:15 p.m. ET; Program: 5:30–8 p.m. ET

The National Constitution Center, in partnership with a coalition of leading free speech organizations, is convening a National First Amendment Summit to discuss the increasing threats to freedom of expression and to celebrate the opening of the Center’s new First Amendment gallery. To lead off the event, author and free-speech advocate Salman Rushdie will engage in a virtual keynote conversation with Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America about the importance of free speech in a democratic society and the forces of censorship that imperil its existence. After Salman Rushdie’s keynote conversation, the summit will feature a series of panels with America’s leading First Amendment thinkers. In-person summit participants include First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, Bruce Brown of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Will Creeley of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, Jameel Jaffer of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, Stephen Solomon of NYU’s First Amendment Watch, and leading scholars Akhil Reed Amar, Jeannie Suk Gersen, Lyrissa Barnett Lidsky, Jacob Mchangama, and Nadine Strossen. 

A welcome reception with access to the National Constitution Center’s new First Amendment gallery will take place before the program from 4–5:15 p.m.

This program is presented in partnership with the Freedom Forum, FIRE, the First Amendment Watch at NYU, PEN America, and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

The History of Religious Liberty in America

Monday, September 18 | Reception: 5:30–6:15 p.m. ET; Program: 6:30 p.m. ET

How did the America’s founders view religious liberty? And what does it mean today? Join constitutional law experts Marci Hamilton, author of God vs. the Gavel: Religion and the Rule of Law, and Michael McConnell, co-author of Agreeing to Disagree: How the Establishment Clause Protects Religious Diversity and Freedom of Conscience, for a special Constitution Day discussion to celebrate the opening of the Center’s new First Amendment gallery. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. 

A reception with access to the National Constitution Center’s new First Amendment gallery will take place before the program from 5:30–6:15 p.m.

How to Interpret the Constitution: A Citizen’s Guide

Thursday, September 28 | Noon ET

New York Times bestselling author Cass Sunstein unveils his new book, How to Interpret the Constitution—a citizen’s guide to the rival approaches of originalism and living constitutionalism. Sunstein will be joined by leading constitutional expert Philip Bobbitt of Columbia Law School to discuss the current controversies surrounding constitutional interpretation and provide their takes on the competing methodologies. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

The Forgotten Years of the Civil Rights Movement

Thursday, October 5 | Noon ET

Prize-winning historians Kate Masur, author of Until Justice Be Done: America’s First Civil Rights Movement, from the Revolution to Reconstruction, and Dylan Penningroth, author of the new book Before the Movement: The Hidden History of Black Civil Rights, explore the central role of African Americans in the struggle for justice and equality long before the social movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

From FDR to Biden: The Creation of the Modern Presidency

Wednesday, October 11 | 7 p.m. ET

The Center for Constitutional Design at Arizona State University and the National Constitution Center present a discussion exploring how the institution of the modern presidency has evolved through the lens of studying the constitutional visions and approaches to executive power of some of America’s past presidents. Join presidency experts Sidney Milkis and Barbara Perry of the University of Virginia’s Miller Center and Stephen Knott of Ashland University for this conversation moderated by National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen.

This program is presented in partnership with the Center for Constitutional Design at Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. 

Native Peoples and Redefining U.S. History

Wednesday, November 1 | Noon ET

Join Yale historian Ned Blackhawk for a conversation on his national bestseller, The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History—a sweeping retelling of American history. Blackhawk explores five centuries of U.S. history to shed light on the central role Indigenous peoples have played in shaping the nation’s narrative. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

From Founders to Politicians: Political Divisions at America’s Birth

Tuesday, November 7 | Noon ET

The election of 1800 was the first hotly contested partisan election in American history. Still, peaceful transfers of power continued for the next two centuries. But how? This Election Day, join Carol Berkin, author of A Sovereign People: The Crises of the 1790s and the Birth of American Nationalism, and H.W. Brands, author of Founding Partisans: Hamilton, Jefferson, Madison, Adams, and the Brawling Birth of American Politics, to explore political partisanship and nationalism in early America. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

What the Black Intellectual Tradition Can Teach Us About Democracy

Tuesday, November 14 | 7 p.m. ET

Join New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie and political scientist Melvin Rogers, author of The Darkened Light of Faith: Race, Democracy, and Freedom in African American Political Thought, for a conversation exploring the ways key African American intellectuals and artists—from David Walker, Frederick Douglass, and W.E.B. Du Bois to Billie Holiday and James Baldwin—reimagined U.S. democracy. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

From Spies to Leakers: The History of the Espionage Act

Monday, December 4 | 7 p.m. ET

The Espionage Act of 1917, one of the most contentious statutes relating to the First Amendment, is back in the news following the indictment of President Donald Trump for mishandling classified documents. What is the Espionage Act and how has it been used over time? Join legal scholar Heidi Kitrosser, author of Reclaiming Accountability: Transparency, Executive Power, and the U.S. Constitution, and political historian Sam Lebovic, author of State of Silence: The Espionage Act and the Rise of America’s Secrecy Regime, to explore the origins, history, and constitutional legacy of this World War I-era law. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.

Loyalists vs. Patriots and the American Revolution

Wednesday, December 13 | Noon ET

Join Joyce Lee Malcolm, author of The Times That Try Men’s Souls: The Adams, the Quincys, and the Families Divided by the American Revolution—and How They Shaped a New Nation, and Eli Merritt, author of Disunion Among Ourselves: The Perilous Politics of the American Revolution, to explore the origins and clashing ideologies during the American Revolution, how Loyalists and Patriots were divided, and how the differing opinions of both groups continue to shape our understanding of American identity. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. 

All programs are free online—register now!

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