ROUNDTABLE BREAKFAST: In Search of the Boundary between Protected and Unprotected Speech

IN SEARCH OF THE BOUNDARY BETWEEN PROTECTED AND UNPROTECTED SPEECH 

ROBERT KIM

This presentation will focus on how law and policy inform the distinction between protected and unprotected speech. Specific goals for these remarks include helping participants to:

•Understand the law and institutional policies governing free speech and harassment/discrimination

•Distinguish between protected and unprotected speech as informed by law and policy
•Review when and how public actors (including universities) may act formally to address inflammatory, offensive, or provocative speech
•Elicit discussion of strategies/actions to help participants prepare for and manage situations involving hurtful yet protected speech

ROBERT (BOB) KIM is a writer, consultant, and leading expert on education law and policy in the United States. A former civil rights attorney, his most recent book is Elevating Equity and Justice: Ten U.S. Supreme Court Cases Every Teacher Should Know (Heinemann, 2020). He is also the co-author of Education and the Law, 5^thed. and Legal Issues in Education: Rights and Responsibilities in U.S. Public Schools Today (West Academic Publishing, 2019 & 2017). His column, “Under the Law" appears monthly in Phi Delta Kappan, a professional journal for educators.  

(https://kappanonline.org/author/rkim/),

From 2011 through 2016, Bob served in the Obama Administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, which enforces federal civil rights laws in K-12 and postsecondary institutions nationwide. Between 2017 and 2021, he was the William T. Grant Distinguished Fellow at Rutgers University, where he taught education law and conducted research on school finance and education equity in U.S. public schools, and a senior investigator at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, where he investigated incidents related to Title IX and other forms of harassment and discrimination.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Kim served as a senior policy analyst at the National Education Association, and as a staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California. He is a graduate of Williams College and Boston College Law School. You can follow him on Twitter at @bob__kim. 

IMPORTANT NEW NOTE: BREAKFAST WILL BE A VIRTUAL MEETING ON ZOOM. THE LINK WILL CHANGE EACH MONTH AND WILL BE DISTRIBUTED TO ALL REGISTRANTS THE EVENING BEFORE THE EVENT.

8:00 am – 8:30 am | Join call to network with attendees

8:30 am – 10:00 am | Presentation and Discussion