First Amendment Days 2022 – “Dare to Speak. Dare to Listen”

First Amendment Days is a weeklong celebration of our First Amendment freedoms – religion, speech, press, assembly, petition. A diverse assortment of speakers, events and activities are offered on campus every spring as a creative way to engage students and the entire Iowa State community to better understand the power of free expression. First Amendment Days is also designed to provide opportunities to exercise our five freedoms.

SUNDAY, APRIL 10

Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen: Advice for Young People – Hon. Judge Rosemarie Aquilina

2 p.m., Ames Public Library Auditorium or via Zoom

MONDAY, APRIL 11

Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen in the Courtroom: Seeking Justice for All – Hon. Judge Rosemarie Aquilina

6 p.m., Campanile Room, Memorial Union

Recording Link

Judge Aquilina will visit several ISU classes and clubs on Monday as a guest speaker. Students and the public are welcome to attend:

8:50-9:45 a.m. Media Ethics, Dr. Michael Bugeja, 163 Hamilton Hall

11-11:50 a.m. Media Law, Julie Roosa, J.D., 163 Hamilton Hall

12:10-1 p.m., Media Ethics, Dr. Michael Bugeja, 163 Hamilton Hall

1-2 p.m. Lunch reception, 172 Hamilton Hall

TUESDAY, APRIL 12

Your Rights, Your Libraries: The First Amendment and the Freedom to Read

  • Robin N Sinn, director of Collections & Open Strategies at Iowa State University
  • Sheila Schofer, director, Ames Public Library
  • Sam Helmick, department coordinator, Iowa City Public Library, former chair of the Iowa Governor’s Commission of Libraries and Iowa Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee
  • Moderator: Julie K. Roosa, J.D., First Amendment specialist, Iowa State University

7 p.m., Ames Public Library via Zoom

Recording Link

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13

Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen: Protecting Free Speech on the Frontlines – Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer of PEN America 

6 p.m., Join the live stream via Webex

Recoding Link


Depth & Dialogue Sessions

Small sessions exploring various First Amendment topics will take place throughout the day.

10 a.m. “Think Like a Journalist” A Conversation with Laura Belin, Bleeding Heartland blog, via Zoom

Recoding Link

Note: The Zoom session will be broadcast from Room 163 Hamilton Hall. Meet as a group or watch on your own.

  • Laura Belin, editor and chief writer, Bleeding Heartland, a community blog about Iowa Politics
  • Moderator: Kylee Haueter, editor in chief, ISU Daily

11 a.m. “Dare to Listen With Empathy,” Oak Room, Memorial Union

  • Nicole Allaire, associate teaching professor, Speech Communication, Iowa State University

Noon. “Move Over Free Speech: Exercising Your Right to Protest,” Campanile Room, Memorial Union

Recording Link

  • Amanda Knief, director of Lectures, Iowa State University
  • Carrie Jacobs, assistant chief of police, Iowa State University
  • Moderator: Julie Roosa, First Amendment Specialist, Greenlee School of Journalism, Iowa State University

THURSDAY, APRIL 14

Feast on the First

11 a.m.-1 p.m., First Amendment Tent, Curtiss Lawn East, Central Campus

Enjoy FREE food, fun and festivities of the five freedoms.

Festivities will include

  • Mini-Jimmy sandwiches from Jimmy John’s and chips, while supplies last
  • Ice cream from ISU Creamery, while supplies last
  • First Amendment Days T-shirts, while supplies last
  • Popcorn Bar hosted by Greenlee’s Public Relations Campaign class
  • Free Stickers for water bottles provided by Greenlee’s Public Relations Campaign class
  • Banned T-shirts Display by Paige Werthmann, First Amendment seminar student
  • Story Map Display by Zane Charter, First Amendment seminar student
  • Sign-making kits with Ashley Martinez Torres, First Amendment seminar student
  • 88.5 KURE Ames Alternative
  • Soapboxes
  • Political Compass display by Ryan Hurley and Olivia Petsche, First Amendment Committee members

11:50 a.m.-12:10 p.m. Carillon concert with freedom-themed music – featuring University Carillonneur Tin-Shi Tam, Cownie Professor of Music


Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen: Seminar – Eva Newland, First Amendment Committee member

1 p.m., Memorial Union, Room 3560


Attention All Content Creators: You Should Care About This First Amendment Session

  • Jeffrey Hunt, J.D., shareholder, Parr Brown Gee & Loveless, Salt Lake City, UT
  • Jared Strong, senior reporter, Iowa Capital Dispatch
  • George Clark, independent journalist, Podcast by George
  • Moderator: Julie Roosa, First Amendment specialist

5:30-6:30 p.m. Room 1, Carver Hall or via Zoom

Recording Link 

Podcast Link 

FRIDAY, APRIL 15

First Amendment Workshop

The culmination of our weeklong First Amendment Days celebration is multiple sessions workshop designed to examine more deeply the challenges and opportunities provided by free expression. Led by First Amendment experts from the state, each 50-minutes session uses current events to engage a dialogue with national scholars. Free and open to the public, sign up for one, two, three or all four sessions. Register in advance or join on the spot.

Session 1 – The Case Against Free Speech

Recording Link

  • Keith Whittington, Princeton
  • Anthony Leaker, Brighton, U.K.
  • Moderator: Brian Steffen, Simpson College

9 to 9:50 a.m. via Zoom

Session 2 – Dare to Record: Filming Police in Public

Recording Link

  • Stephen D. Solomon, New York University
  • David Hudson, Jr., Belmont University
  • Moderator: Julie K. Roosa, J.D., First Amendment specialist, Iowa State University

10 to 10:50 a.m. via Zoom

Session 3 – Unmasking Covid’s Secrets: Journalists Fight for Information

Recording Link

  • Jeffrey Hunt, Utah media law attorney and Iowa State Alumni, Parr Brown Gee & Loveless
  • Randy Evans, executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council
  • Sara Konrad Baranowski, editor of the Iowa Falls Times Citizen
  • Moderator: Julie K. Roosa, J.D., First Amendment specialist, Iowa State University

11 to 11:50 a.m., in-person Room 163 Hamilton Hall or via Zoom

Session 4 – When Control Is the Goal: Stop the Presses!

Recording Link

  • Andrea Frantz, professor of Digital Media at Buena Vista University and executive director of the Society for Collegiate Journalists
  • Lindsie Rank, student press counsel for the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), Philadelphia, PA.

Noon- 12:50 p.m. via Zoom

ALL WEEK

Iowa State University Library First Amendment libguide

Want to study up on the First Amendment? Check out the extensive resources available in this Iowa State University Library First Amendment libguide curated by Charles Yier of the Iowa State University Library in conjunction with First Amendment Days.


Ames Public Library

Visit the Ames Public Library for a special book display featuring First Amendment-related titles or stop by the front desk to make your own yard sign. Find the Library’s complete list of activities here.


Film Screening – “At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal” (2019) 

In connection with the keynote lecture by Hon. Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, we are pleased to make available a free, limited-time screening of the critically acclaimed documentary film At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal.

The screening link will expire on April 11.

“This screening is brought to you by Courage First, from The Foundation for Global Sports Development.”


Political Compass Test – Olivia Petsche and Ryan Hurley, First Amendment Committee Members

Fitting into the theme “Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen”, Olivia Petsche and Ryan Hurley worked together to utilize the popular The Political Compass test to create a visual of ISU students’ political alignments. Through this project, Petsche and Hurley hope to convey that although we live in a politically diverse climate, we are more alike than what the media portrays and the differences we do have should be celebrated.

Take the test here.