Arizona lawmakers will be addressing concerns about the apparent restrictions on free speech at Arizona’s public universities and examining events surrounding a program titled, “Health, Wealth & Happiness,” presented by Arizona State University’s T.W. Lewis Center.
The Joint Legislative Ad Hoc Committee on Freedom of Expression at Arizona’s Public Universities will convene to hear testimony regarding the program held on February 8, 2023, and the subsequent closing of the T.W. Lewis Center in June. Author and talk show host, Dennis Prager, and former Lewis Center Director, Ann Atkinson, and Dr. Owen Anderson will be among the individuals sharing their testimony. Invitations have also been extended to ASU faculty and administration who opposed the program.
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The Committee will convene Tuesday, July 18 at 9:00 a.m. in Senate Hearing Room 109, 1700 W. Washington St., Phoenix.
I have been speaking out about how my college at ASU has employee training classes teaching radical gender ideology and has tried to change our bylaws to include that our syllabi are evaluated by antiracist and decolonizing philosophies. I will testify before the Arizona… pic.twitter.com/zpWb497u5U
— Dr Owen Anderson (@dr_owenanderson) July 14, 2023
Arizona State Senator Anthony Kern and Arizona State House Representative Quang Nguyen will serve as Co-Chairmen. Kern and Nguyen, who currently lead the Senate and House Judiciary Committees, will be joined by Senator Frank Carroll, Senator J.D. Mesnard, Representative Austin Smith, Representative Beverly Pingerelli, as well as Democrat legislators.
“Freedom of Speech is a principle our country was founded on and something I will always aim to protect,” said Kern in a press release. “It’s incredibly important that our state’s universities support their students and guests sharing their opinions and viewpoints. We want to create an environment for individuals involved in this situation to share their sides of the story to better understand what occurred with this program and the impacts it may have had on future freedom of expression. My hope is that the ASU faculty and administration who opposed the program will accept our invitation to also share their stories.”
“Arizona’s public universities must be unfettered bastions of free speech and expression,” said Nguyen. “I’m very concerned to see an administrator terminated after coordinating to have conservatives speak on campus. I look forward to hearing from university leadership as to why this happened and what ought to be done to rectify the situation.”
Remember when 39 ASU Barrett Honors faculty said they oppose attaching the Barrett name to a conservative event? Well, they didn’t mind attaching the Barrett name to an event on how to practice witchcraft for feminism and radical healing. Read more here: pic.twitter.com/E2iExdKKbe
— Dr Owen Anderson (@dr_owenanderson) July 14, 2023