A new civic debate series is coming to Uptown Charlotte this fall, pairing an NYU law professor with a longtime North Carolina conservative policy leader to argue over how much Americans owe each other. The inaugural event, titled “Freedom and Responsibility: What We Owe Each Other,” is set for October 29 at the Carolina Theatre at Belk Place, and it kicks off a new series called Public Square.
The debate will explore where individual liberty ends and collective responsibility begins, according to WFAE. On one side is Melissa Murray, the Frederick I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law at NYU School of Law, who will argue that real freedom requires shared investment in opportunity and security, and that collective investment is what secures true freedom for everyone. On the other is John Hood, president of the John William Pope Foundation, who will make the case for individual liberty and personal responsibility, arguing that government programs risk creating dependency and that individuals thrive when they take responsibility for their own lives.
Hood brings decades of influence in North Carolina policy circles to the stage. He spent two decades as president of the Raleigh-based John Locke Foundation, which he co-founded in 1989, and has written a syndicated public policy column that has run in more than 50 North Carolina newspapers since 1986, according to the John William Pope Foundation. The foundation he now leads reported more than $188 million in total assets in 2025 and distributes roughly $10 million annually to public policy, education, human services, and arts nonprofits across the state, per InfluenceWatch.
A National Voice on the Other Side of the Podium
Murray, meanwhile, arrives with her own national profile. She co-hosts the Supreme Court podcast Strict Scrutiny and published a book in May titled The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader, according to a video posted on YouTube. She previously clerked for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and appears frequently as a legal analyst on MSNBC, per the same book listing found on Unabridged Bookstore's site.
Moderating the exchange is Carol Quillen, who served as the first female president of Davidson College for 11 years, from 2011 to 2022, before being named president and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in November 2023. Quillen holds a doctorate in European history from Princeton University and previously served on President Obama's Advisory Council on Financial Capability for Young Americans, according to Davidson College.
A Historic Venue Reborn for Civic Life
The debate's setting carries its own story. The Carolina Theatre at Belk Place reopened in March 2025 after an eight-year, $90 million restoration led by Foundation For The Carolinas, following nearly 50 years sitting vacant, per QC Exclusive. The 1927 theater was acquired by the city and later sold to the foundation for $1 in 2012, with the goal of turning it into what backers describe as a community living room for town halls and performances.
Foundation For The Carolinas, which manages more than $5 billion in philanthropic assets, named President Laura Yates Clark as its new CEO in April, following the retirement of former Bank of America executive Cathy Bessant, as Hoodline previously reported. The foundation is one of several partners behind Public Square, alongside Elon University School of Law and WFAE, Charlotte's NPR news source.
Part of a Bigger Push in Uptown Charlotte
Elon Law's involvement reflects its recent growth in the city. The school expanded its footprint by opening a regional center in South End and launching an in-person law degree program in Charlotte, according to Axios, giving it a stake in shaping legal education and civic engagement in North Carolina's largest legal market.
The Public Square series is presented by the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation in partnership with the Durham and Morton families, and its debut arrives as the library system pushes forward on its own major Uptown project. The library is currently building a $137 million, five-story Main Library on North Tryon Street, funded by $72 million from Mecklenburg County and $65 million in private philanthropy, with an opening projected for spring 2027, Axios has reported. Hoodline covered the project's leadership in an August story on new library CEO Angie Myers's $137M Main push.
The October 29 event is framed under the theme “The American Story: 250 Years of Democracy through Debate,” tying local civic conversation to the upcoming U.S. semiquincentennial, with additional Public Square events planned for spring and fall 2027, per 6AM City. Tickets are $35 for general admission and $15 for students, and the venue operates on a cashless payment system; tickets are available through Ticketmaster.
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