FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. August 20, 2024 — The Future of Free Speech is thrilled to announce Sir Salman Rushdie and Masih Alinejad—two of the world’s leading advocates for freedom of expression—for our inaugural Global Free Speech Summit this fall, hosted by The Future of Free Speech and Dialogue Vanderbilt.
Sir Salman Rushdie will have a wide-ranging conversation (via Zoom) on free speech in cultural institutions with Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America. Rushdie is one of the most celebrated authors of our time. An eclectic writer and noted public intellectual, Rushdie won many of the world’s top literary prizes. His novels, greeted always with anticipation and acclaim, include The Satanic Verses, The Moor’s Last Sigh, The Ground Beneath Her Feet and The Enchantress of Florence. He served for two years as president of PEN America, the world’s oldest human rights organization.
Masih Alinejad is an Iranian journalist and women’s rights activist renowned for her fearless stand against compulsory hijab and the Iranian regime’s oppressive policies. Her dedication to justice led her to journalism, where she exposed government corruption and human rights abuses. Forced into exile, Masih created the “My Stealthy Freedom” movement, empowering Iranian women to defy compulsory hijab laws and inspiring a global fight for freedom and equality. Masih will discuss the crackdown on protests in Iran and why democracies should not take free speech for granted.
The summit will also feature prominent speakers like Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub, former ACLU President Nadine Strossen, The Economist columnist James Bennett and New York Times columnist David French, as well as many other experts from academia, industry and civil society.
Speakers and panels will focus on the most pressing challenges threatening global freedom of expression while identifying impactful solutions to reinvigorate this fundamental freedom. Attendees will be able to attend keynote talks and panel discussions on a variety of topics, as well as showcases of the best practices and emerging technologies that use the principles of free expression to address societal problems.
Learn more and register for the Global Free Speech Summit here.
About The Future of Free Speech
The Future of Free Speech is an independent, nonpartisan think tank located at Vanderbilt University working to restore a resilient global culture of free speech in the digital age through knowledge, research and advocacy. Learn more at www.futurefreespeech.org and follow on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.
