Come to the 9th Annual NH Liberty Forum!

The 9th Annual NH Liberty Forum is THE place to be if you want to learn about all the exciting news happening in the liberty movement!

The Free State Project hosts two large gatherings each year: NH Liberty Forum & the Porcupine Freedom Festival (aka PorcFest). Liberty Forum is an annual convention-style conference that features interactive workshops, fun & educational events, and more. This year’s Liberty Forum takes place from February 18-21, 2016 at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester, NH, and the FSP has an impressive lineup of speakers booked, including NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden!

“Living Liberty”

The theme for Liberty Forum 2016 is “Living Liberty,” which will focus on highlighting what it’s actually like to live here in New Hampshire and how powerful it is to be surrounded by like-minded individuals that are working toward making history together.

The liberty community in the Free State consistently makes local and national news. During research, those considering the move will come across articles and videos about civil disobedience, court victories and political victories. What does not make the headlines is the fact that there is a vibrant liberty community that is full of “normal” people, with normal families and normal jobs, with normal hopes and dreams, just wanting to live normal lives and be free of government intervention. Hiking, swimming, fairs, festivals, sports, Community Market Day, potlucks, play dates for children through the Porc Family Connection group, babysitting, move-in parties, helping each other during emergencies—these are just some of the ways in which the liberty community grows together on a daily basis.

Come meet us and see if you would like to be part of the decentralized intentional communities that we’re building!

Liberty Forum 2016 Featured Speakers

Yes! You heard right! NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden will be speaking at Liberty Forum—live from Russia!

In addition to Snowden’s talk, Lyn Ulbricht will be sharing an update on the appeal trial of her son, Ross Ulbricht, sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for allegedly creating a darknet market named Silk Road under the pseudonym Dread Pirate Roberts.

Free State Project early movers, thought leaders, and tastemakers will be speaking on topics such as civil disobedience: challenging the City of Portsmouth’s monopolistic ban on the rideshare service Uber, the NH Supreme Court case regarding the religious rights and tax-exemption status of the Church of the Sword, a libertarian church founded by FSP movers, and the NH Department of Education’s lawsuit against the Town of Croydon regarding school choice.

Liberty Forum attendees can get a firsthand account of this summer’s historic protest that reinstated Tor anonymous internet browsing at New Hampshire’s Kilton Library, or listen in to talks from Scott Sumner, the economics “blogger who saved the economy”, political scientist and think-tank executive William Ruger, author and law professor Ilya SominStudents for Liberty founder Alexander McCobin, and others!

See the full NH Liberty Forum schedule & get your tickets before it’s too late!

Luncheons

Several special breakout luncheons are planned at various restaurants around downtown Manchester, NH on Friday and SaturdayWant to attend? Just click through to the Facebook event page or email [email protected] to RSVP.

Friday, Feb 19 from noon to 2pm:

  • School Choice LuncheonMurphy’s Taproom, 494 Elm St.
    Enjoy a casual school choice roundtable discussion with Michelle Levell about the work she’s been doing here with families in New Hampshire to promote homeschooling and other alternatives to public schools. Levell is the director of School Choice for New Hampshire and has served on several the board of several organizations including the Educational Choices Foundation, the New Hampshire Homeschooling Coalition, and the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance, which named her their Activist of the Year in 2014.
  • Medical Marijuana LuncheonBaked Downtown Café & Bakery, 1015 Elm St.
    Join Dennis Acton at this roundtable discussion about the status medical marijuana in NH. Acton runs the Patient Caregiver Alliance of NH, which works to educate doctors, policy makers, and caregivers about the laws and therapeutic effects of cannabis.
  • Realtor’s Luncheon — Portland Pie Company, 786 Elm St.
    Join realtor & FSP mover Mark Warden from Team Porcupine Real Estate for an engaging roundtable discussion about moving and buying a home in New Hampshire. Warden has been in the real estate business for 20 years as an agent, investor and landlord. Mark formed “Team Porcupine Real Estate” in 2009, serving residential and commercial real estate clients, particularly Free State Project movers. Mark will also be co-hosting a discussion back at the Radisson hotel on Real Estate Investing in New Hampshire at 3pm and another on Buying Real Estate in New Hampshire on Saturday at 3pm.
  • Entrepreneurs LuncheonMilly’s Tavern, 500 N Commercial St.
    Join our roundtable discussion with entrepreneur Mike Vine, a lifelong liberty activist who moved from Manhattan to Portsmouth NH in 2011. Vine was the Lead Organizer of PorcFest X and the First Annual Freecoast Festival. He owns a liberty-focused marketing communications firm, serves as Editor of The Freecoast, and co-founded the Seacoast’s first liberty meeting space: The Praxeum.

Saturday, February 20 from noon-2pm:

  • Civil Action Luncheon — Margaritas, 1037 Elm St.
    Join FSP mover & NH State Representative Amanda Bouldin for a roundtable discussion about her work with Shire Sharing—a nonprofit charity that provides meals to families in need on Thanksgiving—and how private charity succeeds in New Hampshire.
  • New Hampshire Liberty Alliance Luncheon The Farm Bar & Grille, 1181 Elm St.
    FSP mover & NH State Representative Keith Ammon leads a discussion about what the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance is achieving at the State House in Concord. The NHLA is a non-partisan coalition that works to increase individual freedoms in NH by monitoring bills in the legislative sessions. They review and evaluate liberty-sensitive bills, then publish a weekly handout called The Gold Standard that is given to members of the NH House of Representatives to inform them as to whether bills up for a vote are pro-liberty or anti-liberty, and whether they increase or decrease the budget.

Activities for Families

More and more families are moving to New Hampshire each month for the Free State Project, and the Porc Family Connection group has become their one-stop resource for educational activities, support, and fun through cooperation and mutual aid, including play dates, childcare exchange, clothing hand-me-downs, and more!

All Liberty Forum attendees are invited to meet like-minded friends through the Porc Family Connection room on Friday & Saturday, Feb 19-20, from 9 am–6 pm! The Porc Family Connection room will be filled with snacks, toys, and games for kids; plus, experienced childcare providers will be available on Friday & Saturday from 10am–noon and 2pm–4pm, as well as during the first annual Liberty in Action Awards Dinner ceremony on Saturday night. Childcare services are available on a donation/“pay what feels right” basis. This way, families can still attend and catch a little bit of everything without worrying about their young ones.

Drop in to the PFC room and join us for the Make-Your-Own Ice Cream Sundae Party on Friday at 2pm, the Porc Family Connection Pizza Party lunch Saturday at noon, or just stop by anytime for a place to relax or play!

Family-centered discussions at Liberty Forum include:

Want to see more of Manchester, NH besides just the hotel and the breakout luncheons? Join us for a taste of art & culture as we tour Manchester’s Millyard Museum on Thursday at 2pm and the Currier Museum of Art on Sunday at 1pm. Click to RSVP for the Millyard Museum Tour and/or the Currier Museum of Art Tour.

“Liberty In Action” Awards Dinner & Ceremony

Join us Saturday night at Liberty Forum for the first annual Liberty In Action Awards dinner, celebrating those in the New Hampshire liberty community who exert the fullest practical effort toward the creation of a truly free society. The show will also feature music & entertainment from mover Andre Rosa and will conclude with a smashing good party!