On Wednesday, May 6, at 6 p.m., at Rockport Public Library, University of Maine Associate Professor Dr. Phillip Buckley will give a presentation examining freedom of speech from two overlapping perspectives: American constitutional law and American culture.

"Freedom of speech is a cherished American right," said a Library news release. "It is highly protected by the First Amendment, and a majority of Americans from all political perspectives claim to strongly support free speech. At the same time, free speech controversies and conflicts regularly rock American society. At times, many Americans seem to endorse a 'free speech for me but not for thee' approach, crying foul when views they support are restricted but endorsing or at least accepting restrictions on expression with which they disagree."

The program will explore questions such as: How does American law balance the individual right of free speech with the need that the government has to restrict speech at times? What philosophical and political values underpin the right of free speech? How does living in a “strong free speech society” impact what it means to be a citizen? What role has free speech played in American history and what role does it play in American culture and politics today?

Dr. Buckley is a member of the Justice Studies faculty at the University of Maine at Augusta, where he works out of the UMA Rockland Center (“URock”). An expert on Constitutional Law and Education Law, he has published and presented research on various First Amendment topics including the speech rights of K-12 students, the speech rights of teachers and other public employees, and religion in public schools. At UMA, he teaches several courses, including Constitutional Rights, American Legal History, and Legal Research and Writing. Originally from Maine, Dr. Buckley has taught at many universities in the US and overseas. He holds his law degree from George Washington University and his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania.