The Chicago Canon on Free Inquiry and Expression
Tony Banout · Tom Ginsburg
Oct 2024 · Univ of Chicago+ORM
Ebook
240
Pages
family_home
Eligible
info
About this ebook
A collection of texts that provide the foundation for the University of Chicago's longstanding tradition of free expression, principles that are at the center of current debates within higher education and society more broadly.
Free inquiry and expression are hotly contested, both on campus and in social and political life. Since its founding in the late nineteenth century, the University of Chicago has been at the forefront of conversations around free speech and academic freedom in higher education. The University's approach to free expression grew from a sterling reputation as a research university as well as a commitment to American pragmatism and democratic progress, all of which depended on what its first president referred to as the "complete freedom of speech on all subjects." In 2015, more than 100 years later, then University provost and president J. D. Isaacs and Robert Zimmer echoed this commitment, releasing a statement by a faculty committee led by law professor Geoffrey R. Stone that has come to be known as the Chicago Principles, now adopted or endorsed by one hundred US colleges and universities. These principles are just a part of the long-standing dialogue at the University of Chicago around freedom of expression—its meaning and limits. The Chicago Canon on Free Inquiry and Expression brings together exemplary documents – some published for the first time here – that explain and situate this ongoing conversation with an introductory essay that brings the tradition to light.
Throughout waves of historical and societal challenges, this first principle of free expression has required rearticulation and new interpretations. The documents gathered here include, among others, William Rainey Harper's "Freedom of Speech" (1900), the Kalven Committee's report on the University's role in political and social action (1967), and Geoffrey R. Stone's "Free Speech on Campus: A Challenge of Our Times" (2016). Together, the writings of the canon reveal how the Chicago tradition is neither static nor stagnant, but a vibrant experiment; a lively struggle to understand, practice, and advance free inquiry and expression.
At a time of nationwide campus speech debates, engaging with these texts and the questions they raise is essential to sustaining an environment of broad intellectual and ideological diversity. This book offers a blueprint for the future of higher education's vital work and points to the civic value of free expression.
Free inquiry and expression are hotly contested, both on campus and in social and political life. Since its founding in the late nineteenth century, the University of Chicago has been at the forefront of conversations around free speech and academic freedom in higher education. The University's approach to free expression grew from a sterling reputation as a research university as well as a commitment to American pragmatism and democratic progress, all of which depended on what its first president referred to as the "complete freedom of speech on all subjects." In 2015, more than 100 years later, then University provost and president J. D. Isaacs and Robert Zimmer echoed this commitment, releasing a statement by a faculty committee led by law professor Geoffrey R. Stone that has come to be known as the Chicago Principles, now adopted or endorsed by one hundred US colleges and universities. These principles are just a part of the long-standing dialogue at the University of Chicago around freedom of expression—its meaning and limits. The Chicago Canon on Free Inquiry and Expression brings together exemplary documents – some published for the first time here – that explain and situate this ongoing conversation with an introductory essay that brings the tradition to light.
Throughout waves of historical and societal challenges, this first principle of free expression has required rearticulation and new interpretations. The documents gathered here include, among others, William Rainey Harper's "Freedom of Speech" (1900), the Kalven Committee's report on the University's role in political and social action (1967), and Geoffrey R. Stone's "Free Speech on Campus: A Challenge of Our Times" (2016). Together, the writings of the canon reveal how the Chicago tradition is neither static nor stagnant, but a vibrant experiment; a lively struggle to understand, practice, and advance free inquiry and expression.
At a time of nationwide campus speech debates, engaging with these texts and the questions they raise is essential to sustaining an environment of broad intellectual and ideological diversity. This book offers a blueprint for the future of higher education's vital work and points to the civic value of free expression.
A collection of texts that provide the foundation for the University of Chicago's longstanding tradition of free expression, principles that are at the center of current debates within higher education and society more broadly.
Free inquiry and expression are hotly contested, both on campus and...
Discover more
About the author
Tony Banout is the inaugural executive director of the University of Chicago's Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression. A lifelong advocate for ideological diversity and inclusion in academia, Banout serves as a board member of the Heterodox Academy. Tom Ginsburg is the Leo Spitz Distinguished Service Professor of International Law at the University of Chicago, where he serves as faculty director for the Forum on Free Inquiry and Expression, as well as the Malyi Center for the Study of Institutional and Legal Integrity. He is the author or editor of thirty books, including How to Save a Constitutional Democracy with Aziz Z. Huq, also published by the University of Chicago Press.
Tony Banout is the inaugural executive director of the University of Chicago's Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression. A lifelong advocate for ideological diversity and inclusion in academia, Banout serves as a board member of the Heterodox Academy. Tom Ginsburg is the Leo Spitz Distinguished Serv...
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
