From May 2022 to May 2023, PEN America and the American Historical Association (AHA) co-hosted Flashpoints: Free Speech in American History, Culture, and Society. This series presented the fascinating and complex history of free speech in American democracy to public audiences in cities across the country. In this public event series, preeminent scholars examined how free speech has evolved; illuminated past debates over who has the right to speak; and shed light on present debates about free speech in the context of protest, dissent, and the quest for social change.

Visit the Flashpoints Educational Resource Hub at pen.org/flashpoints for comprehensive, downloadable Discussion Guides for each panel discussion topic, appropriate for high school, college, and university classrooms and other group discussions; recordings of each panel discussion, including engaging, topical introductions by local performers; and 5-7 minute-long videos by the panelists that focus on their “flashpoint” moment of interest.

Videos produced by Phatt Features
https://pen.org/flashpoints/