Elizabeth Nolan Brown

Next week, about 550 free speech advocates and thought leaders will descend on Philadelphia for @TheFIREorg's first-ever Soapbox conference. Believe it or not, in FIRE's 27-year history, we've never hosted a general-audience free speech conference. We've hosted student and faculty conferences, but nothing like this. We figured the 250th anniversary of American independence was as fitting a time as any to give it a try. We had no idea what to expect. Would anyone buy tickets? Conference experts told us most tickets are sold in the weeks leading up to an event. Instead, we sold out two months in advance! America's free speech movement is growing, and its members are eager to meet one another. I'll deliver the opening keynote, "The Fight for Free Speech," a nod to the title of the ACLU's first annual report in 1921. The talk will summarize the story I tell in my forthcoming book: how civil libertarians fought to make the promise of the First Amendment a reality. Other speakers include @nickgillespie, @LarryLessig, @prestonjbyrne, @ENBrown, @CaseyMattox_, @chrisbest, @RosenJeffrey, @FreeRangeKids, @sapinker, @Musa_alGharbi, @marcorandazza, @AdamThierer, @DavidAFrench, @whignewtons, the @wethefifth guys, @ishapiro, @noam_dworman, @JohnHMcWhorter, @mtaibbi, and many, many more. I can't wait to see you all next week. And if you can't make it, I hope to see you at the next one. Just be sure to get your tickets early! soapbox.fire.org/soapbox/110…