FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  Susie P. Gonzalez

susie.gonzalez@trinity.edu

Sept. 16, 2010

Trinity University to Observe First Amendment Week by Answering the Question of ‘Can I Say That?’

SAN ANTONIO – For the first time, Trinity University will examine boundaries of free speech in the United States with discussions of the topic, “Can I say that?” The highlight of the week will be a lecture by author and First Amendment expert Oliver S. “Buzz” Thomas at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 30, in Northrup Hall Room 040. His talk is free and open to the public.

Thomas is a minister, attorney, author, teacher, and community leader who has served churches in Tennessee and Louisiana. As an attorney, he has practiced at every level of state and federal courts including the United States Supreme Court, and he taught First Amendment Law at Georgetown University Law Center. He served on the Maryville (Tennessee) Board of Education and has provided training to teachers and administrators from more than 500 school districts from North Carolina to California.

Co-author of The Right to Religious Liberty: The Basic ACLU Guide to Religious Rights and Finding Common Ground, a First Amendment handbook, Thomas is a regular contributor to USA Today.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Tennessee, Thomas earned a Master of Divinity from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, received his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee College of Law, and earned his Master of Law from the University of Virginia.

Jennifer Henderson, chair of Trinity’s department of communication, said much of today’s speech falls outside the boundaries of what founders of this country originally envisioned. Among the questions she hopes to discuss are:
 

          ·          Can I write an editorial against U.S. immigration policy?

          ·          Can I publish a cartoon that defiles Muhammad? 

          ·          Can I wear a Nazi T-shirt to school?

          ·          Can I burn the Quran?  How about a cross?

          ·          Can I swear on television? 

Each day of First Amendment Week will be dedicated to a particular freedom. Topics are:
 

          ·          Monday, Sept. 27 – Freedom of Assembly, with an event at 12:30 p.m. in the courtyard of Storch Memorial Building titled “What Will You Give Up For Free Food?”

          ·          Tuesday, Sept. 28 – Freedom of Speech, with readings of banned books at noon on Trinity’s Coates Esplanade and a presentation by Henderson, “What Can’t We Say Today?” at 8 p.m. in Northrup Hall Room 040.

          ·          Wednesday, Sept. 29 – Freedom to Petition, with events at noon on the Esplanade and a presentation by Michael Soto, associate professor of English, and David Tuttle, dean of students and interim Vice President for Student Affairs, “Petition to Results” at 8 p.m. in Northrup Hall Room 040.  

          ·          Thursday, Sept. 30 – Freedom of Religion, featuring the Thomas lecture, “Religion Clauses.”

          ·          Friday, Oct. 1 – Freedom of the Press, with a First Amendment Q&A at noon in the Forrest Smith Dining Room at Mabee Dining Hall.

The events are sponsored by Trinity's division of Student Affairs, Campus Publications, departments of communication and education, and the University chaplain.

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