This study of how higher education leaders see the free speech phenomenon, i.e., how they are experiencing and responding to free speech issues, is significant because universities, perhaps more than any other democracy's institutions, are considered to have a special responsibility for safeguarding democratic values, such as free speech. The leaders of universities set the tone for the institution. Thus, the primary research question guiding this study was: How are higher education leaders experiencing and responding to free speech issues? From an empirical perspective, the study is about how leaders in higher education perceive the issue of free speech on their campuses, particularly how they are experiencing it and how they are responding. Nearly all the leaders claim to support free speech, yet, when an incident involving a free speech issue arises on campus, many leaders back down to public pressure against it. The study attempted to discover if the leader's political ideology and leadership position affect how higher education leaders experience free speech and how they respond. This study resulted in four major findings: (1) Higher education leaders believe a university should have a free and open discourse for faculty and students; (2) There was disagreement on the limits, if any, that should be imposed on speech; (3) During the interviews, no higher education leader categorically expressed the origin of free speech as delineated in the founding documents of the United States, mainly the Declaration of Independence; and (4) Terms like free speech, diversity, inclusion and equity need concise clarification to avoid confusion and the fear of "cancel culture." [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]