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The Federalist Society’s National Lawyers’ Convention begins this week in Washington, DC; this year’s theme is “New Frontiers,” embracing everything from technological advances to the rise of artificial intelligence to young people at the forefront of the conservative legal movement; It hopes to underscore the importance of open debate, freedom of expression and genuine participation across the political aisle.

The event will feature law students from universities across the country advocating for free speech and diversity of viewpoints in an environment of what they say is an increase in “cancel culture,” censorship issues, and incidents of campus unrest that have led to crackdowns on event speakers or ostracism by peers or professors.

Students who run local Federalist Society chapters at law schools across the U.S. face very different obstacles in defending free speech and open debate, though some more subtle than others.

As the next generation of lawyers prepares to join hundreds of law students, prospective colleagues and judges in D.C. for Thursday’s conference, each told Fox News Digital they see the same challenge ahead of young conservatives: not just defending free speech but redefining it — an academic setting they say often punishes dissent rather than encourages open debate.

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Each of the students talked about different attempts they had encountered to inhibit conversation or reduce their good faith attempts to communicate with others; This was part of a broader pattern seen on campuses across the country.

Last month, administrators at New York University School of Law canceled pro-Israel legal expert Ilya Shapiro from speaking at an event hosted by the Federalist Society chapter on October 7.

Administrators had initially suggested the group postpone the event date, citing protest concerns and expected unrest. Students resisted and insisted that history be preserved; instead they said that relocating or delaying would amount to “yielding to the heckler’s veto.”

Public outcry ensued, and administrators eventually agreed to allow Shapiro to speak at the event as planned.

The unrest has become more intense in recent years, and students have spoken of attempts, from subtle to overt, to intimidate them or exclude members.

At the University of Michigan, students gathered outside a Federalist Society event and “took note of who was coming and going,” said Matthew Holmes, department chair at the University of Michigan Law School.

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Anti-Israel protesters march down Fifth Avenue toward Washington Square Park in New York City on Friday, May 3, 2024. (Fox News Digital’s Rashid Umar Abbasi)

“There are groups that tell their members, ‘If you go there, you won’t be welcome in ours,'” he added.

Other incidents have targeted Jewish speakers and conservative viewpoints, leading some to call this a growing culture of intolerance.

“We are entering a new legal frontier,” said Jordan Holmes, a law student at the University of Texas at Austin, referring to this year’s convention theme.

“Everything from artificial intelligence to the courts is changing,” said Holmes, who chairs the university’s Federalist Society chapter. “But if people stop talking to each other, that’s when the violence starts. We can’t let that happen.”

David Huang, who directs the Federalist Society department at Yale, echoed the same sentiments. Each of the law students individually spoke about the impact of the Charlie Kirk assassination. Kirk was killed while speaking on stage at a university in Utah. His death sent shockwaves across the United States and especially on college campuses across the country, where administrators and students spoke of growing fears that violence would escalate.

Federalist Society presidents and other young conservatives interviewed after Kirk’s death expressed concern for their own safety and fear of a broader chilling effect if they refrained from hosting controversial speakers or events that invited heated debates.

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People hold a banner as they attend a memorial service organized by Turning Point USA for conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was killed at Colorado State University on September 18, 2025, in Fort Collins, Colorado, the next stop on his speaking tour. (Cheney Orr/Reuters)

“I think it’s something that affects all of us deeply,” Huang said of Kirk’s death and the environment on campus. “The threat of political violence — especially against conservatives on law school and college campuses — is a very troubling thing to have in the back of your mind.”

But those fears were quickly dispelled, he added, with an event hosted by the Yale Federalist Society chapter just a day later, focusing on the controversial topic of birthright citizenship. “This was one of the most controversial events of the period,” Huang said. “I was worried. I asked for more security, but things went well and we actually had the highest turnout we’ve seen in years.”

“There is a view that participation equals consent,” Holmes said.

He said of Kirk: “I think one of his best quotes is: ‘When people stop talking, that’s when the violence begins.’ “And I find that a lot of people are reluctant to participate, that they don’t see the opposition’s ideas as legitimizing, or even worth accepting.”

At the end of the day, Holmes said, “The idea that I can’t talk to you because your ideas are so repulsive, this can’t go on if we’re going to build a democratic republic.”

“I think other FedSoc presidents are reporting similar things happening as people realize the importance of channeling our disagreements into discussions, events, conversations rather than violence.”

Of course, students say these efforts still have a way to go.

Still, they struck an optimistic tone about the future. Lamb noted his dean’s leadership and Texas’ political climate, while Holmes noted new civil discourse funding at the University of Michigan aimed at bringing together students from across the ideological spectrum for structured, candid dialogue.

Banners at the Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library on the campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 27, 2025. (Sophie Park/Bloomberg)

“[What’s] Lamb said the unique thing about the Federalist Society and the community is that people are not skeptical about looking to the future. “They’re full of energy. And in a world that often tells young people to find something to be angry about, it’s really refreshing to be around people, students, lawyers, who are really willing to think deeply about where the law is going and where we should go next.”

“We brought in Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Scrametti, who just last week won a landmark Supreme Court case regarding gender transition, surgeries and chemicals for children,” Huang said.

“People put up posters saying the Fed Soc was inviting child killers, brought them to events, and, you know, people have a right to express that disagreement — but that kind of irresponsible rhetoric is the kind of thing that turns the temperature up in the national political arena,” he continued.

“And I think we’re all well aware of the ramifications that could follow. I’d rather see how people express their disagreements,” Huang said. “Come, attend the event, and ask tough questions.”

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This was echoed by each of the students who will be publicly participating in this year’s conference.

The Federalist Society’s student chapter and rotating student chapter president will host a live event at this year’s conference where they will interview judges about a passion, hobby or interest and its relationship to the law. Holmes and Caroline Martin, chair of the Federalist Society chapter at the University of North Carolina School of Law, will host this year’s sessions.

The hope, organizers said, is to help judges personalize themselves beyond their day-to-day work and drive home the fact that they are human beings beneath strict courtroom procedures and heavy black robes.

“Come to events, have your ideas challenged,” Holmes said of Federalist Society chapters across the country. “Feel free to push back. We really, really want to examine the ideas. Because when we do that, that’s when we come to the best results.”