Freedom Behind Bars: The First Amendment and Incarceration in America

This Constitution Day we pause to celebrate the First Amendment and its role in securing freedom and liberty for all Americans. But what does the First Amendment look like for incarcerated people? In this discussion, we’ll examine how freedom of expression is restricted and fought for within the American criminal justice system. We’ll explore how natural rights are upheld, or denied, in prisons across different states; the legal and ethical boundaries of speech, press, and religious expression for incarcerated individuals; and the transformative power of prison journalism and art in preserving human dignity and challenging injustice. Moderated by Dr. Kerry Sautner, President and CEO of Eastern State, this conversation will feature Moira Marquis (Legislative Director, FIRE), Yukari Iwatani Kane (CEO, Prison Journalism Project), and Alexandra Morgan-Kurtz (Deputy Director, Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project). Together, they’ll challenge us to reconsider the meaning of “freedom of expression” and imagine how it might be fully realized, even in the country’s most restricted spaces.