Our Reports

Busting myths, caricatures, and misinformation that characterize much of the public discourse on campus free speech, this nearly 100-page original research report published in April 2019 offers a hard-hitting analysis of more than 100 speech-related controversies of recent years, finding that many implicate tensions among free speech, equality, and inclusion, in the classroom, the dorm, and the quad. Bringing up to date the analysis in PEN America’s groundbreaking October 2016 report, And Campus for All: Diversity, Inclusion, and Freedom of Speech at U.S. Universities, Chasm in the Classroom scrutinizes recent trends, including the rise of hateful speech and incidents of bigotry on campus; shutdowns and disinvitations of controversial speakers; outrage campaigns against faculty members for their speech; the mixed views of a new generation of students on issues of free speech and hate speech; and the perils and pitfalls of federal and state legislative measures purportedly aiming to protect free speech in polarized campus environments.

Released in October 2016, this report combines extensive reporting and thorough analysis of all sides of recent debates, as well as three case studies informed by exclusive interviews with protagonists in some of the most pitched campus battles prior to the 2016 election: skirmishes over free speech and issues of race at Yale, confrontations surrounding activism on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at UCLA, and controversies over the implications for free speech of specific provisions of Title IX—the law that bars sex discrimination at educational institutions—at Northwestern University.

Released in November 2017, this white paper responds to a spate of legislation and legislative proposals at the state level that are aimed to buttress free speech protections. In all, the white paper analyzes a dozen proposed or passed state bills. It also addresses the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act, a bill that was passed in late 2016 by the U.S. Senate. The white paper concludes that state level legislation that purports to defend campus speech may actually impair it.