Author to deliver public lecture in Aylesbury Vale town about ‘Free Speech in a Time of Woke’

‘Free Speech in a Time of Woke’ is the title of a public talk by a well-known author on free speech in Buckingham next month.

Dr Joanna Williams is the first speaker in a series of seminars organised by the newly formed Buckingham branch of Academics For Academic Freedom.

In her talk at The Vinson Centre at 6pm on Wednesday, May 31, Dr Williams will examine the state of free speech, drawing on ideas from her new book, How Woke Won: The Elitist Movement that Threatens Democracy, Tolerance and Reason.

Joanna Williams is the director of the think tank CIEO. She is a columnist for the online magazine Spiked and writes for numerous publications including The Times, The Spectator, The Telegraph and Daily Mail.

Seminar organiser Dennis Hayes is a visiting professor at the University of Buckingham. He founded the campaign group Academics For Academic Freedom and has supported the setting up of the Buckingham branch, made up of students and academics.

He said: "The idea of anything being ‘woke’ is often denied by those who others would describe as very ‘woke’. It is very important to get clear about the notion of ‘woke’ because, as Joanna argues, it is a dangerous elitist movement that threatens free speech.

"Joanna’s challenging and controversial book discusses ‘How Woke Won’, but that doesn’t mean we have to accept the censorious authoritarianism of the woke. We need to challenge it through more and more free speech.”

The talk is free to attend but registration is required on Eventbrite.