In this week's episode Elizabeth and Matt Watson discuss orthodoxy and student disaffection in social work education. A recent survey project revealed that, while most students report a positive social work education experience, the feeling is by no means universal. Some students perceive that their religious beliefs, political ideology, or even th…

In On Censorship James LaRue issues a balanced and reasonable call to action for all citizens. It is a combination of personal reflection and deep dive into specifics of book banning. James LaRue has been a public library director for many years, and was director of the Freedom to Read Foundation, and ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. He has w…

Welcome to the latest episode of the Free Speech Forward podcast in which hosts Joia and Chris engage with Ilana Cohen, the Community Engagement Director at the Alliance for Constructive Ethnic Studies. They discuss Ilana's background as a child refugee from the Soviet Union and her journey towards advocating for free speech and critical thinking i…

This podcast features a recording of a live-stream event hosted by Maccabi Lec-Ari and Mike Burke. The discussion focuses on Israel, liberal democracy and rising Antisemitism, particularly within the UK.

Chocolate is the top-selling Halloween candy and is considered a must-have treat for the trick-or-treaters and eaters of leftovers alike. But do you think about where your chocolate comes from? Listen to this week's podcast to find out! _________ This week's episode is part of an occasional series about coffee, and this week we actually take time t…

In this episode of the Free Speech Forward podcast, host Chris Bush engages with Frank Xu, President of Californians for Equal Rights Foundation (CFER) and Founding President of San Diego Asian Americans for Equality (SDAAFE). Frank shares his journey as an activist, highlighting the interconnectedness of free speech and equal opportunity. He discu…

In this week's episode Elizabeth and Matt Watson discuss ideology in his field of social work. A recently published survey study confirmed that a trend toward liberalism in higher education faculty is even stronger in social work and the researchers expressed less concern about this than we'd hoped. We consider what the findings and the tone of the…

In this week’s Dissidents Podcast, Jennifer Richmond and Winkfield Twyman, Jr. talk about the meaning of life through the eyes of black sheep and non-conformists. Like Martin Buber in I and Thou, we find meaning in relationships. When we can see each other as they are, and make room for that, we end up expanding ourselves. Unlike social media that …

Welcome to another episode in which co-hosts and co-founders of 1776 Forward, Joia & Chris, speak with one of the Board Members of the Institute of Liberal Values, David Bernstein. David shares his experiences growing up in a politically liberal environment and how his belief in free speech was shaped by personal and historical events. He also emph…

This week's episode is the first in an occasional series about coffee and chocolate. Our guest, James Hayes-Bohanan, has been doing research on political, social, cultural, and environmental geography of coffee for 20 years. In this episode James gives us an overview of historical and contemporary coffee culture and the sociopolitical impact of cof…

In this week’s Dissidents Podcast, Jennifer Richmond and Winkfield Twyman, Jr. speak with Ian Rowe. Ian recently wrote a review of their book (Letters in Black and White: A New Correspondence on Race in America), which he entitled Three Cheers for Colorblindness. Wink and Jen, much like they start their book, start the conversation with Ian by gett…

In this episode of the Free Speech Forward podcast, your hosts Joia and Chris interview Mars Cheung, an advocate for free speech and enlightenment values. Mars shares his journey into the realm of free speech advocacy, emphasizing the importance of free speech for societal flourishing. He discusses the nuances of communication, effective interview …

In recognition of Banned Books Week (September 22-28) we’re reading James LaRue's On Censorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the US. Join us for a live meeting with the author on Wednesday, Oct 2 at 7pm ET. (https://youtube.com/live/8IGf08uvIK4?feature=share) In preparation for the live stream, read along with our ILV advisors who…

We left our Critical vs Classical Social Justice in Social Work panel discussion wanting more and were inspired to do a series of follow ups! The third week each of the upcoming months, we will focus on a related topic, with guests, personal stories, and the latest research on the state of social work education. In case you missed it, we are re-rel…

In recognition of Banned Books Week (September 22-28) we are launching our inaugural book club with James LaRue's On Censorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the US. Join us for a live meeting with the author on Wednesday, Oct 2 at 7pm ET. In preparation for the live stream, read along with our ILV advisors who will discuss the boo…

Join ILV Director, Jennifer Richmond, and ILV Advisor, Jason Littlefield every month for Reformation Radio's live conversation on ILV's X (⁠@ilvalues). Each month we explore current and unfolding events with the aim of finding strategies for uniting people for the cause of liberty. Bring a cup of coffee, a headful of thoughts and a heart full of ho…

In recognition of Banned Books Week (September 22-28) we are launching our inaugural book club with James LaRue's On Censorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the US. Join us for a live meeting with the author on Wednesday, Oct 2 at 7pm ET. In preparation for the live stream, read along with our ILV advisors who will discuss the boo…

Join us for today’s episode with Joia and Chris in conversation with Cherise Trump, the Executive Director of Speech First. Cherise discusses the unique free speech protections in the United States and the need to educate the public on the value of free speech. She points out how the United States Supreme Court has ruled time and time again, as rec…

In this week's episode Elizabeth and Professors of Sociology Mark Horowitz and Anthony Haynor talk about the pitfalls of trying to publish research findings that challenge progressive orthodoxy. They describe their own experiences with editors and reviewers (one of their papers about grade inflation was the topic of prior episodes). We also discuss…

In recognition of Banned Books Week (September 22-28) we are launching our inaugural book club with James LaRue's On Censorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the US. Join us for a live meeting with the author on Wednesday, Oct 2 at 7pm ET. In preparation for the live stream, read along with our ILV advisors who will discuss the boo…

Writer and activist Helen Raleigh has paired up with Professor and economist Paul Prentice to provide “three counterpunches” to socialism. The first counterpunch is about defining our terms. What is Democratic Socialism? According to Helen and Paul, it is a oxymoronic term we simply made up to “soften” socialism. However, when they ask others what …

Today’s episode features what turns out to be a succinct masterclass in public speaking as Chris and Joia chat with Zander Keig, one of the senior leaders of the Institute for Liberal Values and an expert public speaker with over 30 years of experience. Zander discusses his early involvement in advocating for gay and lesbian rights in the 1980s (an…

In the second of our two-part series, Jennifer Richmond and Winkfield Twyman, Jr. talk with Brent Hamachek about his book Dissidently Speaking. As self-proclaimed Dissidents in their own book, Letters in Black and White, Jen and Wink were excited to hear from Brent on how he defines “dissidently speaking.” In this episode, we work to define labels …

In the first of our two-part series, Jennifer Richmond and Winkfield Twyman, Jr. talk with Brent Hamachek about his book Dissidently Speaking. As self-proclaimed Dissidents in their own book, Letters in Black and White, Jen and Wink were excited to hear from Brent on how he defines “dissidently speaking.” We discuss the power of language, including…

In today’s episode, Chris and Joia interview Dr. Brandy Shufutinsky, who has been the Director of Education and Community Engagement at the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values. Brandy discusses the importance of free speech and the erosion of this right in recent years, which makes us become more “robot-like”. She also emphasizes the need for educa…

In this week's episode Mark Horowitz joins us for a discussion about potential racism revealed by online daters' preferences. In a recent published critique of a book on the subject, Mark questions the authors' claims of systematic and racially exclusionary patterns in online dating. The book was based on a large dataset and we appreciate the compl…

The topic of this week's episode is the long history of biases inherent to the book reviews used for library collection decisions. Elizabeth is joined by academic librarian Pamela Hayes Bohanan to discuss 60 years of research and reflection about the limited exposure librarians get to the large corpus of potential acquisitions. While perspectives d…

Join in as Chris and Joia speak with Ken Pope, the Vice President for Academic Operations and Strategic Partnerships at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. Ken discusses the importance of free speech and the need for a robust understanding of ideologies like Marxism, socialism, and communism. He also emphasizes the role of education in pr…

In this bonus episode, we share the recording of our Liberal Values in Practice livestream about the current state of libraries and librarianship, including comparisons to McCarthy era fears. Library professionals Pamela Hayes-Bohanan, Sara Hartman-Caverly and Caroline Nappo define McCarthyism in both its historic and contemporary contexts and its …

In this bonus episode, we share the recording of our Liberal Values in Practice livestream with Helen Pluckrose. ILV Director Jen Richmond and Dissidents Podcast hosts Mike and Elizabeth discuss Helen's new book, The Counterweight Handbook: Principled Strategies for Surviving and Defeating Critical Social Justice - at Work, in Schools, and Beyond. …

In this episode, co-hosts Chris and Joia have the pleasure of speaking with Pam Hayes-Bohanan, a librarian with a career spanning nearly three decades. She shares her journey and insights on the importance of free speech, including discussing how her upbringing and experiences shaped her beliefs. She emphasizes the need for diverse voices and criti…

In this week's episode Steven James Lawrence joins Elizabeth for a discussion of critical theory, teaching in K-12 and college, as well as what he calls an organic perspective on diversity, equity and inclusion. We talk about the healing value of stories and the potentially destructive nature of community prescribed victim narratives. Stephen descr…

This week's episode is a follow up with the authors of an article covered in a previous Dissidents podcast (S4, E15) about grade inflation and university faculty ideology. Mark Horowitz and Anthony Haynor generously offered to share their insights, clarifications, and elaborations based on years of research on this topic. We discuss historical tren…

In this episode, co-hosts Chris and Joia are delighted to talk with one of the Fellows of the Institute for Liberal Values, Elizabeth Spievak. Elizabeth shares her journey as a free speech advocate, highlighting the impact of cancel culture on her academic work and the importance of free speech in research and academic freedom. She emphasizes the n…

In this Legacies of Black Pioneers series of the Dissidents Podcast, Winkfield Twyman, Jr. and Jennifer Richmond speak with Professor Glenn Loury on his newly released book, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative. We discuss authenticity, individualism, enterprise, faith, and end our conversation on the lively question of whether the …

This week Mike and Elizabeth discuss political conflict from the perspective of evolutionary psychology. While making the country (or the world) a better place for all is a commonly shared goal, the means for accomplishing it are rarely agreed upon. The authors of a recent article argue that in the simplest of terms, conservatives tend to value ama…

Join co-hosts Chris and Joia and get to know one of the founders and board members of the Institute for Liberal Values, Jennifer Richmond. Jennifer believes we are at our best when protecting individual rights and freedoms. Hear her stories and discover how Jen’s background in International Relations has shaped her understanding and advocacy for Fr…

In this week's episode we talk about public speech as a mechanism for thinking, learning, and reflection. Elizabeth is joined by the founders of 1776Forward, Chris Bush and Joia Houheneka, for a discussion about how speaking aloud may impact our worldviews and relationships. We refer to an article that inspired us to think aloud about the impacts o…

This week Mike and Elizabeth discuss how we interpret others' decision-making motives and whether our assumptions make it more difficult to have liberal conversations. As a starting point, we reference research in which participants reasoned about their own and others' choices in different contexts. One study examined motives attributed to Trump an…

Co-hosts Chris and Joia are delighted to bring on their first guest. James Petts is a barrister (the equivalent of a trial attorney) in London, England where he focuses on commercial and Chancery (property) cases, especially those involving fraud or dishonesty. To him, liberalism is fundamentally the rigorous reasoned inquiry in all aspects of life…

This week Mike and Elizabeth discuss grade inflation and beliefs about teaching and learning, particularly among radical left college professors. A recently published survey of state university professors confirmed previously documented trends of declining standards and grade inflation. Political orientation emerged as the most useful predictor of …

Welcome to the Free Speech Forward Podcast! Co-hosts Chris and Joia introduce the unique format of the show and tease our first episodes. Join us on this journey exploring the different stories, perspectives, and communication advice of various free speech activists.See: www.1776forward.com

In this introductory episode, co-host Joia interviews co-host Chris. In addition to being one of the co-founders of 1776 Forward, Chris is a real estate investment and development executive and entrepreneur who is currently focused on a mission to bring greater beauty, efficiency, and new modes of living and working to the built environment. His ph…

In this second introductory episode, co-host Chris interviews co-host Joia. Joia is not only one of the co-founders of 1776 Forward, she is also an Excellence Coach and a leader in luxury entrepreneurship with a background in luxury travel and luxury retreats. She is on a mission to elevate luxury to make it synonymous with excellence, human greatn…

This week Mike and Elizabeth discuss the potential fall of diversity statements as a condition of university employment. In such statements job candidates are required to describe how they can enhance their future employer's diversity goals. MIT president Sally Korbluth recently announced that the statements will no longer be mandatory, calling the…

In this week's episode Mike and Elizabeth talk about research that contradicts the commonly accepted belief that prejudice has increased in recent years. While expectations of day-to-day discrimination were especially high during Donald Trump's presidency, evidence suggests that overall levels of prejudice have continued to be flat or in decline fo…

This week we talk about research on the potential effects of race on the type of feedback and grades that students receive. In a recent study, poorly written college essays believed to be submitted by Black students were more leniently scored. White raters gave Black writers more overt praise and encouragement, but offered less helpful feedback and…

In this week's episode Mike and Elizabeth talk about trends in the censorship of scientific results. Recent research suggests one explanation for censorship behavior is misguided hyper-concern for others reactions. Scientific findings were rated as potentially harmful, and less beneficial, if they were controversial or confusing. We discuss the imp…

In this series of the Dissidents Podcast, Legacies of Black Pioneers, we speak with Ada Akpala of the Equiano Project on her problem with the term “black excellence”. Co-hosts, Winkfield Twyman, Jr. & Jennifer Richmond speak often of black resilience and triumph in their book, Letters in Black and White. After reading Ada's piece, My Problem with t…

In this week's podcast, Mike Burke meets with Jewish intellectual Dmitri Shufutinsky to discuss his upcoming book, "Jew-Jitsu". The conversation ranges across a number of topics, including how to identify and push back against a worryingly widespread and apparently growing antisemitism and historic illiteracy. Resources:Neo-Confederacy & Palestinia…