Contemporary Challenges to Freedom of Expression

Undergraduate / Graduate

Laws, policies and practices in a range of countries -- and in select regional and international bodies -- threaten to further erode the already fragile right to freedom of expression under both international and domestic law. States' violations of the right have also produced a "chilling effect" that has created fear and uncertainty about what is protected speech, further undermining people's ability to harness various forms of expression as a means of dissent and/or protest. This survey course will be case heavy, using examples from select countries with a particular focus on developments over the last decade in North America and Europe. Topics to be addressed include the crackdown on expression in various protest movements, including the racial justice, austerity, BDS, climate justice and Palestine solidarity movements; the increasing use of national security justifications for restricting expression ("glorification"/"apology" of terrorism); big tech and online censorship; media freedom, including the case of Julian Assange; the growth in SLAPP (strategic lawsuit against public participation) and other lawsuits against journalists/media workers/nongovernmental actors; infringements on cultural and artistic forms expression; academic freedom, including the "cancellation" of specific voices within the academy; and the weaponization of freedom of expression by violent far right groups.