2011 Students' Rights Conference

Students from across the state attended the ACLU-TN’s Students’ Rights Conference on October 22, 2011. Entitled “Youth In Action: Know Your Rights, Know Your Tools”, the annual event focused on issues that matter to students, both in school and in the community. The participants, from a variety of diverse backgrounds, had the opportunity to learn more about freedom of speech and expression, Internet privacy and rights, interacting with the courts and law enforcement, LGBT students’ rights, and becoming a student activist and advocate for change. Students were also able to participate in thoughtful discussions, learn from each other’s experiences, and ask experts questions from how to start a Gay Straight Alliance club to how to respond to racial profiling.

Conference speakers included:

• David Hudson First, Amendment Center - “Freedom of Speech & Expression: A Student’s Rights”

• Sergeant Anna-Maria Williams, Metro Police Department - “Street Law: Know Your Rights When Encountering Law Enforcement”

• Pamela Sheffer, Oasis Center - “Out of the Closets and Into the Classrooms”

• Tricia Herzfeld, ACLU-TN Legal Director - “Cyber Speech”

• Lindsay Kee, ACLU-TN Communications Director, and Lawanda Bradley, Oasis Center - “Activism 101: Tools for Making Change in Your Community”

• Youth Speaks Nashville - Spoken Word Performance

Students left empowered with the knowledge of their rights and the determination to stand up for them.

The 2011 Students’ Rights Conference was a great success and we are excited to offer it again in the fall. The 2012 conference is free and open to public and private high school students from across the state.

Resources

Know Your Rights: A Guide for Public School Students in TN (30.7 MB)

Students' Rights Conference save-the-date poster (202 KB)