The 2021 National Lawyers Convention took place November 11-13, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC. The topic of the conference was "Public and Private Power: Preserving Freedom or Preventing Harm?". This panel explored "Classrooms, Curricula, and the Law."
Competing legal and cultural interests are at play in the push to implement critical race theory and diversity, equity, and inclusion-based curricula at all levels from elementary school through higher education. Some argue that state bans are necessary to combat a divisive, stigmatizing, and arguably unlawful set of educational practices. Others take a libertarian approach, casting classrooms as marketplaces of ideas and criticizing proponents of CRT-bans as opponents of free speech. Still others praise these educational practices for raising greater awareness of American’s historical injustices, arguing that this is a necessary step towards a more equitable and inclusive society. In the tradition of the First Amendment, this convergence of issues leaves much room for a lively debate.
Featuring:

Prof. Akhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Mr. Josh Hammer, Opinion Editor, Newsweek; Research Fellow, Edmund Burke Foundation
Ms. Kimberly Hermann, General Counsel, Southeastern Legal Foundation
Ms. Letitia Todd Kim, Managing Director, Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism
Mr. Greg Lukianoff, President and CEO, Foundation for Individual Rights in Education
Moderator: Hon. Kyle Duncan, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit