Freedom of speech, and the importance of protecting it from powerful opponents, has become an urgent topic of discussion since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. His administration has, among other actions, aggressively targeted international students expressing opinions or engaging in protest it dislikes for deportation, pressured universities to change curricula to abide by conservative specifications, removed accurate historical information that doesn’t fit the Trump agenda from National Park Service sites, pushed to have comedians who joke about Trump fired, and is now moving to define speech opposing ICE as possibly criminal incitement to violence.
Iowans were already engaged in issues of free speech and censorship before 2025. The Reynolds administration, for example, is still working to fully implement its Florida-style “don’t say gay” school policy, parts of which, including the school book ban, are currently blocked by preliminary injunctions issued by a federal court in May.
With all this as a background, there will be a rally in support of free speech on the Ped Mall in Iowa City on Wednesday evening.
“So much seems to be happening at once at the state and federal levels, it just seemed like the time was right to do this,” Rod Sullivan told Little Village.
Sullivan, the longest-serving member of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors, organized the rally.
“We’ve got a number of speakers lined up, who’ll each take a slightly different approach in terms of topic,” he said.
According to Sullivan, confirmed speakers for the event include Johnson County Board of Supervisors Chair Jon Green, Prof. Andrew Jordan of the University of Iowa College of Law, UI journalism professor Brett Johnson, state senator and U.S. Senate candidate Zach Wahls and Sam Helmick of the Iowa City Public Library, who is also president of the American Library Association.
The Free Speech Rally at the Weatherdance Fountain Stage on the Ped Mall is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 1.
