Well Said

Welcome to the third season of Well Said! We start this season off with a conversation about how young conservative women face unique challenges on college campuses. Karin Lips recently published the book: "You're Not Alone: The Conservative Woman's Guide to College". Join Cherise and Karin as they discuss the choices conservative students need to think through if they want to maximize their college experience. 

Join Cherise as we look back on some of our best moments from Well Said in 2023.

After October 7th there has been widespread disappointment in the way universities have chosen to respond to Hamas’s horrific attacks on innocent Israeli civilians as well as the mounting evidence that anti-Semitism that has been festering on campuses for years is reaching a breaking point. From alumni, major donors, prospective employers, and the general public, universities are being called out for their inability to take a strong stance against terrorism as well as the killing of innocent Israelis. All of this combined has brought up many legal questions regarding free speech, hostile environments, harassment, political retaliation, equal protection, and discrimination. Cherise is joined by Professor David E. Bernstein of George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School to discuss these legal questions as well as tease out areas that still lack clarity.

Cherise invites Jennifer Richmond, the Co-founder and director of the Institute for Liberal Values and Author of “Letters in Black & White: A New Correspondence on Race in America,” to join her in discussing some of the major barriers to debate and political discussion we are seeing on campuses and in our society today. 

Cherise is joined by David L. Bernstein to discuss ever-relevant concepts outlined in his book “Woke Antisemitism: How Progressive Ideology Harms Jews.” As we have seen the horrific acts by Hamas on the people of Israel and we brace ourselves for what could be one of the bloodiest wars in the region, Americans have taken notice of the reactions of our universities and our college students who in some cases are actually defending the actions of Hamas and continue to advocate for more. David and Cherise will discuss the connections between far-left radical ideology, Marxist ideology, and the anti-Semitism we are seeing on college campuses today, as well as why higher education is at the center of these political agendas. 

Join Cherise as she sits down with Stevie Giorno, a recent grad from Belmont University while he discusses the roller coaster of events that took place after he posted a "Happy Fourth of July" message on social media the summer of 2020. Stevie details his experiences with death threats, viewpoint discrimination, and standing firm for his convictions. Stevie's actions inspired his peers, their parents, and many others at the university who were all too afraid to speak up for the American idea and speak out against the far-left radicals on campus. We hope Stevie's story told in this episode and in the recent book "Outcast: How the Radical Left Tried to Destroy a Young Conservative" will inspire more students to stand firm in the face of tyranny.

Cherise Trump sits down with Paula Scanlan, a recent graduate from the University of Pennsylvania who competed on U-Penn’s swim team. Paula is most recently known for speaking out against biological men participating in women’s sports. Inspired by fellow female athletes, Paula broke her silence in June 2023 on her experience as a teammate of Lia Thomas, formerly Will Thomas, and the efforts of her college’s administration and student body to silence her and suppress her right to free speech. Cherise and Paula discuss the attempts made to silence and intimidate her as well as how she hopes to inspire females, especially athletes, to come forward, share their stories, and join her in making change to protect women everywhere.

As we approach the new school year, join Cherise as she interviews students who stood up for their beliefs and spoke out despite the consequences. It takes tremendous courage to push back when your institution attempts to censor or coerce you and we are sorely lacking current day examples of what this can look like. Hopefully these stories will inspire other students to speak out and defend their right to express their ideas. In the first episode of this series, Cherise interviews @Brandubh4 who is a 14 year old student in Ireland. Brandubh recently spoke out at a women's rally pushing back on the popular notion that gender is fluid which has made what it means to be a woman obsolete. Brandubh showed great strength and courage writing and reading aloud her poem, "I am not a Dress", challenging the dogmatic thinking of the far-left. Social: 

Join Cherise and Lathan Watts from Alliance for Defending Freedom as they discuss a huge win in the U.S. Supreme Court last month in the case 303 Creative v. Elenis. Many of you know that June was a big month in the U.S. Supreme Court for higher education and free speech. With Biden’s unconstitutional tactic to buy votes by forgiving student loan debt without the approval of congress, or the Court finally calling out affirmative action practices in the universities for being down-right discriminatory. There was another great win for free speech and a big loss for government compelled speech. Here in America, an individual’s right to free speech is just as protected by the First Amendment as is their right not to espouse ideas or be forced to speak things they do not believe. Cherise and Lathan delve into the bigger questions this case answers and has brought to the forefront of policy discussions regarding protected speech.

Cherise sits down with Dr. Aaron Kheriaty to discuss his experiences with censorship in the medical field as well as during his career in academia. They then dive into a discussion regarding the well-established DEI apparatchik that has enforced various forms of censorship and coercion on students, faculty, as well as citizens around the country. This insidious leviathan of administrators, bureaucrats, programs and systems, and spread across various institutions, has created what is known as the  "censorship industrial complex", and it is continuing to grow.