Celebrating the 220th Anniversary of the Bill of Rights

On November 28th, YAL@VU co-sponsored the Celebration of the 220th Anniversary of the Bill of Rights with the Office of Active Citizenship and Service. The event was a special dinner featuring table discussions on the Bill of Rights along with a lecture by and Q&A with guest speaker John Seigenthaler, founder of the First Amendment Center. We distributed YAL Pocket Constitutions along with the programs at the event. See more pictures and video below.

An Evening with Vanderbilt Law Professor Erin O’Hara

On November 17^th, YAL@VU hosted a dinner discussion with Vanderbilt Law Professor Erin O’Hara.

Prof. O'Hara presented a very interesting lecture entitled "Can Societies Be Separated From Their Laws?" We discussed various approaches to undesirable laws including seasteading, contracting/choosing governing law, and arbitration.

We had another great turnout at this event and the video of the presentation can be watched below:

An Evening with Belmont Univ. Political Science Prof. Nathan Griffith

On November 10^th, YAL@VU hosted a dinner discussion entitled “2081: The Year We Become Equal” with Belmont University Political Science Professor Nathan Griffith.

The event began with a showing of “2081,” a short film adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's “Harrison Bergeron,” which depicts a dystopian future in which all people are mandated equal – “handicaps” are placed on the strong, the intelligent, and the beautiful. Following the movie, Griffith's talk focused on the tension between equality and liberty, citing Madison's “Federalist No. 10” and Rousseau's “The Social Contract,” before evolving into a discussion of the definitions of true freedom versus individual freedom.

We had a great turnout for this event. With a few new students in attendance, hopefully our active membership continues to grow as a result. The video of his lecture can be watched below: