Welcome Remarks

Welcome Remarks
Hans Binnendijk, Chairman of the Board, Humanity in Action
Welcome to the 10th Anniversary Celebration of Humanity in Action. Before we turn to Richard Haass and Roger Cohen for keynote remarks, a word about HIA and its mission. HIA is dedicated to the proposition that nations should be judged among other things based on the way they treat their minorities, whether religious, ethnic, racial
or other. HIA also believes that education and civic engagement can affect the way in which nations behave, and that the tragic lessons of the past should not be forgotten.
The 20th Century was not kind to minorities. In the first half of that century, millions were killed simply because of their race, religion or ethnic background. We saw improvement in the second half of the century (for example the American Civil Rights movement) but as the century ended, we saw this same evil active again in places like
Bosnia, Kosovo, and Rwanda. In Africa today, we are faced with this evil in Darfur. In Europe today, Muslim minorities are not assimilating into European societies. Their alienation breeds violence with potentially dramatic consequences. In Russia today, the Kremlin leadership asserts the right to protect minority rights for Russian nationals in neighboring countries, sometimes using this right to intimidate their neighbors.
With these last examples we see that minority rights today are again an issue with potentially profound strategic consequences. We are now in the most serious economic crisis since the Great Depression. We cannot forget that 75 years ago, that earlier global economic crisis eventually yielded the greatest assault on minority rights that the world has ever witnessed. Some believe that todayʼs crisis if unchecked could again shake the very foundation of democratic legitimacy. This is a time for vigilance. So HIAʼs mission is even more relevant today than when it was founded a decade ago.
In that past decade HIA has been extremely successful at its educational mission. It operates in six countries: the US, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, France and Poland. About 750 Fellows from Europe and the US in about equal proportions have attended HIAʼs five-week program. The bonds that are formed by these Fellows
improve transatlantic relations at the grass roots level. American Fellows have come from 89 different colleges and universities.
I can judge from the experience of my own two daughters as well as testimonies from other Fellows that this program has a profound impact on their lives and social entrepreneurship. Being an HIA Fellow is a lifetime experience. HIA is in touch with 96% of its previous Fellows and it has created two centers to develop even closer
ties with them. This success is demonstrated by the fact that 83% of the American Senior Fellows contributed to HIAʼs annual appeal last year. This is remarkable participation. So HIAʼs mission is more important than ever; and HIA has been very successful in accomplishing that mission.