Throughout his twenty-one-year tenure as president of Columbia University, Lee C. Bollinger was an outspoken national leader on many of the major issues confronting higher education and society more broadly. One of the country's preeminent First Amendment scholars, he published frequently on free speech and press while leading a wide range of transformational university initiatives. During a period marked by profound change, he spoke within and beyond the academy about the challenges facing journalism, global free speech, and academic freedom, as well as the critical value of increasing racial and cultural diversity in higher education through affirmative action.
In Search of an Open Mind is a curated selection of Bollinger's speeches, articles, and opinion columns during these momentous decades, reflecting on many significant events and challenges. These pieces cover a broad array of topics, from civil rights and civil liberties to the nature of the university and living a good life. Bollinger spoke often about the essential role of affirmative action in college admissions in overcoming the long legacy of racial discrimination, having led the litigation in the landmark case of Grutter v. Bollinger, in which, for the first time, a majority of the Supreme Court upheld the practice as constitutional. With the engaging writing style of a seasoned speaker and gifted teacher, this book provides first-hand insights into central issues of our civic and political life that are as timely now as when they were originally delivered.
By:
Lee Bollinger (President Emeritus Columbia University)
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 235mm,
Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9780231217996
ISBN 10: 0231217994
Pages: 360
Publication Date: 04 December 2024
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Acknowledgments Preface 1. Inaugural Address, October 3, 2002 2. Seven Myths About Affirmative Action in Universities, 2002 3. Statement on the Future of Journalism Education, April 15, 2003 4. A Resounding Victory for Diversity on Campus, June 24, 2003 5. Educational Equity and Quality: Brown and Rodriguez and Their Aftermath, November 3, 2003 6. Cardozo Lecture on Academic Freedom, March 23, 2005 7. Commencement Address, May 17, 2006 8. Statement About President Ahmadinejad’s Scheduled Appearance at the World Leader’s Forum, September 19, 2007 9. Introduction of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of the Islamic Republic of Iran, September 24, 2007 10. Commencement Address, May 21, 2008 11. Globalization and Free Press, 2011 12. A Free Press for a Global Society, October 10, 2010 13. The Pentagon Papers, June 22, 2011 14. The Real Mismatch, May 30, 2013 15. To Move Forward, We Must Look Back, June 27, 2013 16. Sixty Years Later, We Need a New Brown, May 16, 2014 17. Commencement Address, May 21, 2014 18. How to Free Speech: Americans Only Figured Out Free Speech Fifty Years Ago. Here’s How the World Can Follow Our Lead., February 12, 2015 19. What Once Was Lost Must Now Be Found: Rediscovering an Affirmative Action Jurisprudence Informed by the Reality of Race in America, April 12, 2016 20. Commencement Address, May 18, 2016 21. Affirmative Action Isn’t Just a Legal Issue. It’s Also a Historical One., June 24, 2016 22. The No-Censorship Approach to Life, September 18, 2016 23. Our Spiritual Plank, October 24, 2016 24. Commencement Address, May 17, 2017 25. Convocation Address, August 27, 2017 26. Can the First Amendment Save Us?, October 5, 2017 27. Remarks at the Opening of The Forum, September 26, 2018 28. The Free Speech Century: A Retrospective and a Guide, Part 1: One Hundred Years of Free Speech, November 5, 2018 29. The Free Speech Century: A Retrospective and a Guide, Part 2: The Next Hundred Years—A Global Public Forum, November 6, 2018 30. How the U.S. Could Prosecute Jamal Khashoggi’s Killers, March 31, 2019 31. Commencement Address, May 22, 2019 32. Convocation Address, August 25, 2019 33. The Future of the University, October 19, 2019 34. Statement to the University Senate Plenary Regarding the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) Movement, March 6, 2020 35. Announcing the Columbia Climate School, July 10, 2020 36. Commencement Address, April 30, 2021 37. Commencement Address, May 18, 2022 38. Convocation Address, August 28, 2022 39. Welcome Remarks, April 18, 2023 40. Farewell Dinner Remarks, April 28, 2023 41. Columbia College Class Day Address, May 16, 2023 42. Commencement Address, May 17, 2023 Notes Other Books by Lee C. Bollinger Index
Lee C. Bollinger served as Columbia University’s nineteenth president from 2002 to 2023, the longest tenure of any contemporary Ivy League president. He is the first Seth Low Professor of the University, a member of the Columbia Law School faculty, and a renowned constitutional scholar. Bollinger is one of the country’s most prominent voices for robust freedom of speech and a leading advocate for affirmative action.
Reviews for In Search of an Open Mind: Speeches and Writings
The issues that Lee Bollinger confronted during his more than two decades as Columbia’s president are questions that grip us still: free speech, freedom of the press, affirmative action and racial justice, the purposes of universities. His words over that near quarter century of challenge and change vividly illuminate both where we have been and where we might go. -- Drew Gilpin Faust, President Emerita and the Arthur Kingsley Porter University Professor, Harvard University A beautiful book, and a perfectly timed one. Bollinger combines analytic brilliance with deep humanity and generosity of spirit. A must-read for anyone concerned with the role of the university in American society. -- Cass R. Sunstein, Robert Walmsley University Professor, Harvard University Bollinger's text is a classic of the art form. -- Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, President Emeritus and University Professor, The George Washington University At a time when universities are under siege from both the right and the left, all who care about the life of the mind and the vital role of American universities in the search for truth and in the education of the generations that will follow us can be grateful for this perfectly timed collection of deeply thoughtful speeches and essays by the great First Amendment scholar and President Emeritus of Columbia University, Lee Bollinger. His reflections on two extraordinary decades at the helm of one of America’s greatest universities are a treasure trove of subtle insight and wise guidance. -- Laurence H. Tribe, Carl M. Loeb University Professor Emeritus, Harvard University
