GALESBURG, ILLINOIS (October 2, 2025) — Knox College will hold a discussion titled Rights for Robots at 6PM, Tuesday, October 7, at the Orpheum Theatre in Galesburg. As artificial intelligence advances and human reliance on AI grows, this event will explore timely questions about AI and rights.
The event is sponsored by the Knight Fund for the Study of Religion and Culture and comes a week after the closing of the Knight Fund's first Distinguished Artist-in-Residence re: GeneratedPrairie.
On the surface, the two events do not appear similar, but for Robert M Geraci, Knight Distinguished Chair for the Study of Religion and Culture, who organized both, each hold similar themes.
"I really want to use the Knight Fund to do interesting things. This first year for me, I really thought about AI-related things," Geraci said.
"Our Artist-in-Residence, even though he is a photographer, uses AI in some of his processes. Then I thought about a lecture on robots and rights, whether civil or religious, could be a big thing at the Orpheum. I think it's an interesting subject that I wanted to do in the fall, so we can tie it in with our First-Year Preceptorial seminars and have students from those classes come."
The event will feature a lecture by Northern Illinois University professor David J Gunkel, a response from Knox College political science professor Thomas Bell, and a Q&A session.
Gunkel has written multiple books about technology and the current and possible future of AI in society.
The idea of giving robots rights may not seem like a relevant topic, but it is one humanity may need to address in the future. The discussion is also timely in terms of human rights today.
"We frequently deny other human beings rights; meanwhile, we have discussions about whether corporations have rights, as well as what kind of rights animals have," Geraci said.
"The question in my mind is: if machines become increasingly powerful to a point where we can't distinguish humans from machines, is it right not to give them rights? We don't want to replicate history where humans owned other humans. Do we treat them as equivalent to an animal?"
Recognizing humanity in a machine may be a reach for many, and the option of doing so is immediate but for Geraci, having those discussions, no matter how far-fetched they may seem, may better prepare society for a day when it may be time to have an answer for AI and rights.
"Ultimately, we may find all these conversations about machines are ultimately about humans," he said.
"It's hard to argue for rights for machines when some humans do not have those same rights. I know there may be someone who comes to this and thinks it's crazy talk, that's why it is important to have a conversation in a public space, even if you think it is crazy, you can come and raise these questions and have a dialogue with the community."
