The First at 250 –
A conversation on the First Amendment

Welcome Remarks from Knight President & CEO, Maribel Pérez Wadsworth

As prepared for delivery

One sentence. Five essential freedoms.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

That’s the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

It’s what we’re here to talk about, to celebrate and to protect.

Good evening, and welcome to The First at 250.

Two and a half centuries ago, here in Philadelphia, the Founders argued a country into existence.

They debated. They discussed. And they drafted.

Tonight, I’m pleased that we’ve been able to gather a new generation of Philadelphians as we discuss a crucial part of the democracy invented here: the First Amendment.

What you heard moments ago were the voices of everyday Americans — neighbors — talking about their experiences speaking up and expressing themselves.

It’s a snapshot of how the First Amendment is lived in America today.

Tonight we’ll continue that conversation.

Knight Foundation has spent more than 75 years advocating for the free press and free expression across our communities — freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Every other freedom we have as Americans rests on our First Amendment rights, and so does our self-government.

In this milestone year for American independence, it felt important to be in Philadelphia, with the people who live where our democracy was created.

We’re here tonight to honor the freedom that has always rung out in this city, from street corners and in pamphlets, in newspapers and in Poor Richard’s Almanack — and, yes, from a cracked bell at the top of Independence Hall.

Knight Foundation’s history in Philadelphia doesn’t quite go back 250 years — but we’ve been here for decades.

Our Foundation traces its roots to Knight Newspapers, which in the middle of the 20th century became one of the most successful news companies in the country. Jack and Jim Knight were passionate advocates for journalism, for a free press and for the people who build thriving communities.

In 1969, they bought the Inquirer and the Daily News, and together with hard-hitting Philadelphia journalists, they rebuilt the two papers into powerhouse metro dailies.

Over nearly four decades of Knight ownership, those journalists won 20 Pulitzer Prizes.

Our work today carries on Jack and Jim’s legacy, operating in the 26 communities where they once published newspapers.

We’ve always been proud to call Philadelphia a Knight city — and to stand alongside the Philadelphians who make no apology about working hard to make their city stronger.

Since 1970, we’ve invested more than a quarter-billion dollars to support your vision for this great city.

Journalism is at the heart of what we do. It’s why Knight has been a major supporter of The Inquirer and its non-profit parent company, The Lenfest Institute for Journalism.

And it’s why we’re helping public media stations, like our friends at WHYY, preserve access to independent local news and information — despite federal funding cuts.

Thriving public spaces and robust free expression go hand-in-hand. That’s why we’re advancing projects that bring people together, create economic opportunity and foster a sense of place.

We know that the arts are essential civic infrastructure. So, we’re working alongside the artists and cultural leaders who make Philadelphia stronger, more inclusive and more vibrant.

We’re proud to invest in the Village of Industry and Art, which is supporting creative businesses and providing affordable housing for artists just down Broad Street.

Tonight, we’re proud to be here, in the home of the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra, another Knight grantee.

And to collaborate with the National Constitution Center on the first-ever First Amendment Day.

Now — together with the Disagree Better team — we’re ready to close out the day with this special event.

For Knight, all of this work is interconnected: a thriving information ecosystem, public spaces open to all and robust arts and culture.

They are the foundations of a healthy community.

But there’s one more crucial ingredient: Us.

Each of us must do our part.

We must demand reliable information.

We must engage with one another.

We must help to shape the cities we want and the future we aspire to.

Our right to self-determination is safeguarded by the First Amendment, which ensures that power in our country always rests with the people.

But our rights are only as strong as our willingness, as Americans, to stand up for them, to insist on them and to get out there and use them.

Today, Americans worry that our First Amendment rights are weakening.

Research we commissioned shows that Americans still believe protecting free speech is vital to our democracy. Yet at the same time, barely more than half of Americans feel free to express their political views without fear of government reprisal.

Worse, they expect to feel even less free a decade from now.

And they have good reason.

Our country’s founders could not have imagined our world today.

Technology is reshaping how we access information.

There are vast changes in the ways we live, work, connect with each other — and many times fail to connect.

But what our founders knew was that unchecked power leads to overreach. And that the people must have the tools to push back.

The First Amendment doesn’t exist simply to protect our right to disagree.

It gives us the power to demand change.

It gives people the right to assemble and to protest, yes, but also to affirmatively shape our nation in the image of our greatest ideals.

To demand that our political leaders — the people’s proxies — protect the inalienable rights our founders envisioned.

Because how free we feel as Americans should not depend on whether the party in power happens to be our own.

We do not have to accept division.

We do not have to accept polarization.

We do not have to accept a civic space where we shout over each other, talk around each other, and never listen to what anyone else has to say.

Each of us can demand more from our leaders.

We can make the choice to talk and to listen, to be respectful and to be open-minded.

We can choose to make our First Amendment freedoms stronger.

To preserve them for future generations.

To demand they be upheld.

Tonight, we’re making that choice.

Disagree Better is a nationwide, nonpartisan project created by the National Governors Association to help people find ways to have conversations — sometimes difficult ones — in ways that are respectful and productive.

We’re fortunate to have with us tonight two governors — Josh Shapiro, a Democrat you all know well, and Spencer Cox, the Republican from Utah — who are going to discuss the First Amendment and free expression.

Now, they won’t necessarily agree, but I know they’ll have a thoughtful conversation.

They’ll show how respectful, civic dialogue is still possible — and that we can remain open to changing our point of view.

They’ll model how we can all practice the art of disagreeing better. Not just on stages and in organized forums, but among ourselves, with our friends and families and neighbors.

The governors’ conversation will be moderated by Lulu Garcia-Navarro, co-host of the New York Times podcast The Interview.

Tonight, they will model a way forward. We all will.

This is our choice. To talk better, to listen better, and perhaps even to change our minds.

It’s how our country will grow stronger. How we’ll once again learn to work together. And it’s how we’ll carry our democracy, and the First Amendment, into another 250 years.