Dear Reader,

Are the anti-Semitic protests that engulf America’s college campuses and largest cities an affront to liberalism or a culmination of its inherent logic?

Should they be addressed with more liberalism—more free speech, more right of assembly—or with a realization that liberalism itself has failed?

Far from an esoteric debate best left in the faculty lounge, the future of liberalism in America has become an open question, thanks in large part to the work of Notre Dame political theorist Patrick J. Deneen.

FIRST THINGS is proud to have published many of the most influential contributions to this vital conversation, and we are honored to host a conversation with Deneen and editor R. R. Reno on “After Liberalism” in Chicago on Wednesday, May 15 in Chicago.

To join us, please purchase your ticket at firstthings.com/chicago or by clicking on the button below. A livestream of the conversation will be available to subscribers beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Patrick J. Deneen holds a BA in English literature and a PhD in Political Science from Rutgers University. From 1997—2005 he was Assistant Professor of Government at Princeton University. From 2005-2012 he was Tsakopoulos-Kounalakis Associate Professor of Government at Georgetown University, before joining the faculty of Notre Dame in fall 2012. 

Deneen was awarded the Leo Strauss Award for Best Dissertation in Political Theory in 1995, and an honorable mention for the A.P.S.A.'s Best First Book Award in 2000. He has been awarded research fellowships from Princeton University, Earhart Foundation, and the Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Virginia.  

His widely discussed 2018 book, Why Liberalism Failed, has been translated into over twenty languages and was praised by former president Barack Obama.

Visit firstthings.com/chicago or click on the button below to join us on May 15!

Wednesday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m.

Athenaeum Center for Thought and Culture

2936 North Southport Avenue