Abigail Aguilar, Department of Philosophy, UNLV — Since Socrates first raised issues that come with democracy, free speech and debate has been a challenge in democratic societies. In a current climate of divisive political dialogue, those who want to engage in fruitful discussions need to reject the principle of malice that seems to appear inevitably in such societies. But rejecting malice requires being aware of its forms; this colloquium focuses on current forms of it, with the aim of encouraging all of us to reject these – both when we encounter it in the speech of others and more importantly by avoiding it in our own speech.