🚨At a time when the range of acceptable discourse is narrowing on multiple fronts, I'm proud to have signed this Letter in Defense of Justice and Open Debate. Our resistance to the authoritarian threat mustn't be allowed to harden into dogma or coercion🚨 harpers.org/a-letter-on-ju…
We have an extraordinarily diverse range of signatories spanning the ideological spectrum here, from Nell Irvin Painter to @SalmanRushdie to @jk_rowling, to Margaret Atwood, @dwaynebetts, Wynton Marsalis, Noam Chomsky, @heerjeet, @michelleinbklyn, @Yascha_Mounk nearly 150 more.
What this diverse group of signatories shares is the ardent belief that: "The restriction of debate, whether by a repressive government or an intolerant society, invariably hurts those who lack power and makes everyone less capable of democratic participation."
This is not a list of "the same old white males." Signatories include @coldxman, @JohnHMcWhorter, @JennyBoylan, @Gladwell, @cvaldary, Kamel Daoud, @ZaidJilani, and I could go on and on.
This Open Letter is a signal of support to those who have felt isolated or unable to express themselves freely without fear of reprisal. There are many, many people out here who may not agree on everything but who stand together against censoriousness in any form it takes.
I can't emphasize enough the range of viewpoints attached to this letter, but neither can i over-emphasize the climate of fear that led many people you know and admire to tell us in confidence that they agreed but were afraid to sign. This is why such a statement is necessary. 
People are operating in a climate of self-censorship and fear. I can't tag all ~150 names, but the range speaks for itself:
And last but not least, a HUGE thank you to @Harpers for having the courage to publish this document and create a forum in the October issue for responses to it. To say that not every magazine would facilitate this conversation is an understatement.
One more thing: this letter is not a statement about everyone agreeing with every position every signatory has. The diversity of its signatories is its strength––not a weakness.
