Constitution Day Success!

09/17/13 YAL's Free Speech Wall at Vanderbilt University

This Constitution Day, in celebration of our First Amendment rights to freedom of expression, Young Americans for Liberty @VU erected a Free Speech Wall outside Rand and hosted David Hudson, a scholar with the First Amendment Center.

Our free speech wall received such a great response, we decided to leave it up for the week.  The positivity and lack of hate speech expressed on our wall reflects well on Vanderbilt students.  Thanks to everyone who participated.

Find more, higher definition pictures on our Facebook page!

Mr. Hudson was excellent in his discussion of modern threats to our First Amendment rights.  He focused on four topics:

1. Free speech in public schools
2. Free speech for public employees
3. Freedom of sexual expression, barring child pornography
4. Excessive enforcement of intellectual property rights

Hudson concluded by stressing that protecting freedom of speech is not a partisan issue, and that there have been infringements from all parts of the political spectrum.  He emphasized the need for a robust interpretation of the First Amendment, as free expression leads to a better society.

Vandy Law Professor and First Amendment Law Scholar, David Hudson Jr.

What did you think of our Constitution Day events?  Love them?  Hate them?  Please take a minute to fill out this quick survey.  We want to take your opinions into account.  That's kind of the idea.

Speaking of ideas...

Tuesday, September 24th (tomorrow!) at 7:00pm in Buttrick 212, we are having our first general body meeting and brainstorming session!  We'll be covering logistics/plans for October.  We also want your feedback, ideas, and the topics you'd like to cover. Feel free to bring dinner, along with all your great ideas!

RSVP here on AnchorLink.

Thanks for reading!

Fall 2013 Interest Meeting: Kicking Off the New Semester!

What a great turnout!  After a successful Student Organization Fair on August 23rd, twenty-five potential new members attended our Fall 2013 interest meeting the evening of Tuesday, September 3rd, 2013.

The magnitude of interest in YAL@VU this year has been staggering and inspiring, but comes as no surprise, considering our mission as an organization, our impact on campus, and our dedication to issues and principles that resonate especially well with young people. 

After the interest meeting, old and new members enjoyed smoothies, coffee, and good conversation at Au Bon Pain. 

Check out more photos of the meeting on our Facebook page!

If you were unable to make it to our interest meeting, worry not!  Here's a short recap of what was covered:

1. We welcome libertarians, classical liberals, and small-government conservatives, and those who want to learn more.  You don't have to agree with us on everything.  Diversity of opinion is a beautiful thing!  As YAL@VU, let's work together on issues upon which we do agree.
   
   Our key issues include...
• protecting civil liberties, 
• increasing personal freedom, 
• ending corporate welfare, 
• increasing government transparency, 
• reducing government waste and abuse, 
• lowering taxes, 
• promoting a peaceful and diplomatic foreign policy, 
• and promoting private charity.
  
2. General body meetings will be Tuesdays at 7:00pm.  Meetings will range from socials to discussions to planning to speaker events.  We also go to regional, national, and international conferences, and this year, we are hosting a conference here at Vandy! Check out the schedule below for details.
3. Schedule of events for Fall 2013
4. Subscribe to our email list, join on AnchorLink, and like us on Facebook!  To take it even a step further, become a dues-paying member at yaliberty.org and get a free t-shirt!  Drop in on any of our meetings or events -- we are delighted to have you.  

If you have any questions feel free to contact Emily Crowe, or anyone else on the executive board!

2nd Annual "End the Drug War" Bake Sale

On April 19, YAL@VU held our 2nd annual "End the Drug War" Bake Sale to show support for an end to the war on drugs! We tabling on Rand Wall and gave out delicious brownies along with free swag from the Marijuana Policy Project, Students for Sensible Drug Policy, the Foundation for Economic Education, and Students For Liberty. We signed up over 20 new members while tabling that day. To follow-up, the next week we hosted a screening of Breaking the Taboo, a 2011 documentary about the global war on drugs.