Toleration and Freedom: The American Experience in Context

Boisi event image

A day-long conference co-sponsored by the Boisi Center and Boston University's Institute for Philosophy and Religion.

Date: March 25, 2011

Location: Photonics Center Colloquium Room, located at 8 St. Mary's Street, 9th Floor, Boston University. 

View Event Flyer

Conference Schedule

9:45 a.m.: Continental Breakfast

10:15 a.m.: Opening Remarks (Allen Speight, Institute Director)

10:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.:

Panel #1: Contemporary and Comparative Questions of Toleration

  • The Sustainability of Toleration in Public Discourse"

            Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im, Emory University School of Law

  • Civic Education in Public Schools: Can the State Teach Tolerance?"

                  Erik Owens, Dept. of Theology, Boston College

      • Feathers and Freedom: What the Case of U.S. vs. Wilgus Tells Us about Toleration in America"

                  Jay Wexler, Boston University School of Law

      12:30- 1:30pm: Lunch

      2:15-3:45 p.m.:

      Panel #2: Early Modern Perspectives on American and European Toleration

      • "Apples and Oranges: The Varied Forms of Religious Toleration in Early Modern Europe"

                  Benjamin Kaplan, Dept. of History, University College, London

      • The Appeal to Conscience in Early Modern England and America: Success or Failure?"

                  David Hall, Harvard Divinity School

       

      3:45-4:00 p.m.: Break

      4:00-5:30 p.m.:

       

      Panel #3: Diversity and Toleration

       

      • Evangelical vs. Ecumenical Perspectives on Tolerance and Diversity in the USA Since World War II"

                  David Hollinger, Dept. of History, University of CA, Berkeley

      • "Shari’ah Law in the US"

                  Noah Feldman, Harvard Law School

      Concluding Discussion

      5:45-6:30 p.m.:  Reception

      Back To Top