Tuesday, May 2, 2017
America’s pre-eminent First Amendment Lawyer, Floyd Abrams, joins Mike Collins for a discussion about the history of that amendment and what he sees as threats to free speech.
Attorney Floyd Abrams began his work in First Amendment law when he represented The New York Times in the Pentagon Papers case before the Supreme Court in 1971. He’s been a defender of the First Amendment in major cases ever since.
Abrams has been vocal about the possible threats to the First Amendment and the media at the hands of President Trump, and his new book is a response to the growing criticism of free speech. The Soul of the First Amendmenttakes us all the way back to the early days of the United States and the creation of the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment, and also covers more recent First Amendment court cases, like Citizen United vs. the Federal Election Commission.
Floyd Abrams is in Charlotte to speak at the Annual Law Day of the Mecklenburg Bar Association, but before that, he joins Mike Collins for the hour to talk about the First Amendment, free speech throughout American history and new threats we face today.
Guest:
Floyd Abrams, senior partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel law firm and the author of The Soul of the First Amendment