Join the Libraries for a talk with Sam Lebovic on his recent book, State of Silence: The Espionage Act and the Rise of America's Secrecy Regime.

Come in person or join on Zoom: Zoom link forthcoming

The Espionage Act is one of the most controversial laws in U.S. history, having been used not only to punish spies, but also to prosecute dissidents during World War 1 and leakers of classified information today (plus a certain ex-president).  Tracing the surprising evolution of this confusing law over more than a century, this talk will reveal a fundamental shift in the way that the national security state has sought to police debate in American democracy: where once the state used the Espionage Act to censor speech, today it uses the same law to keep secrets. The resulting secrecy regime – improvised, sprawling, flawed –  poses real threats to American democracy, and is in dire need of reform.