Speeches & Texts
Interdependence Day Memorial Concert for 9/11
Berlin, September 11, 2010
Ambassador Philip D. Murphy
Dr. Barber, Imam Sajid, Mr. Ricketts, delegates to the 8th annual Interdependence Day Celebration and Forum, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Berlin.
Und den Berlinern im Publikum möchte ich dafür danken, dass Sie die Konferenzteilnehmer in Ihrer großartigen Stadt empfangen.
The issues on your agenda could not be more crucial to our world. Previous Interdependence Day celebrations have been held in other global cities of the world, but I can think of no better location to discuss the potential and advantages of working in unison and commonality than here in Berlin, the city that only twenty years ago was a global symbol of the division and repression of the Cold War.
This concert is one of the more solemn parts of the Interdependence Day program. The concert this evening is dedicated to the memory of all those who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 – over 3,000 people of close to 100 different nationalities and many different religions. It is also dedicated to all the children, women and men who died in subsequent attacks fueled by the lethal power of extremist ideologies -- attacks in Bali, Casablanca, Riyadh, Madrid, Beslan in Russia, London, the numerous terrorist attacks in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other countries in the Middle East, including Israel.
Today as we remember 9/11 and all that it symbolizes, it is clear we must also dedicate ourselves to eradicating the threat that violent extremism still poses to all of us. That is one of the challenges of the interdependent world we live in.
Independence has been the motto of states and individuals since 1750. In my country, that quest for independence was founded upon principles of tolerance, respect for religious freedom and freedom of speech. The United States is a nation fueled by the incredible energy that is created when people from different cultures, regions, races and faiths come together in a spirit of cooperation to build better lives for themselves and their children. There is nothing more offensive to President Obama and to the vast majority of Americans than someone deliberately abusing his or her right of freedom of expression to provoke and offend the members of a religious faith, be it Islam, Judaism or any other faith. But one of the costs of that freedom is that the U.S. government is extremely limited by the Constitution in its ability to censor or prohibit speech – even when that speech is profoundly offensive or outright dangerous. The threat to burn Korans on this solemn day was an example of why the motto for coming generations can only be interdependence. Some of you may have been following the headlines about the Florida preacher who was threatening to burn Korans in front of his church. He has only a small congregation of 50 people. What does this story say about global communities and responsibility when someone with so little power in his own community can become a subject of discussion around the world? How do we guard against losing our sense of perspective and balance?
One answer to both of those questions is that interdependence requires more than tolerance. It requires real respect towards those who are different from us. Mr. Ricketts, how many great rap songs have or could be sung around that theme?
Respect will be one of the crucial elements of any strategy to address the challenges of a changed and always changing global landscape. The pace and nature of interconnection, economic interdependence, new technologies – all of these have in some ways brought the world at least superficially closer together, but in other ways demonstrated the intensity of the need for more common approaches. We are in a race between the forces of integration and the forces of disintegration, and we see it every day. There are huge opportunities, new modes of cooperation, and new capacities to improve lives out there – but to take advantage of these new opportunities, we need to define new concepts of leadership at all levels and in terms relevant to the world of today and tomorrow.
As President Obama has said repeatedly, two inescapable facts define the world of the 21st century. First, no nation can meet the world’s challenges alone. And second, the very real obstacles that stand in the way of turning commonality of interest into common action. Leadership in today’s world –and this means all of you – means overcoming those obstacles by building coalitions that can produce results. It means providing incentives for those who are part of the solution, whether they recognize it or not, enabling them and encouraging them to live up to responsibilities that even a decade ago they would never have thought were theirs. It also means providing incentives for those who do not readily accept their responsibilities.
And finally it means, matching results to the values I just talked about. It is not about scoring points and getting headlines. It is about changing conditions, changing attitudes, changing laws, changing people’s lives for the better. We seek to solve problems because we’re committed to global progress that promotes dignity and the opportunity for everyone to live up to her or his God-given potential. Values matter. That should go without saying, but it needs to be not only repeated, but perhaps emblazoned as a set of guiding principle – in your Declaration of Interdependence. Democracy, human rights, development are mutually reinforcing and they are deeply connected to the national interests of all of our countries.
There is no challenge we face more profound than the idea that our differences are more important than our common humanity. Our world sometimes seems to be dominated by political, religious, philosophical, almost psychological conflicts. All too often, these conflicts require us to divide up and demonize people who aren’t “us.” We need to guard against this and stand united.
And so, today on September 11 and tomorrow on September 12 – Interdependence Day -- look back not in anger or forward in fear. Look around in awareness – of the dangers we face but also of the strength of our citizens and of our communities – in the broader context of “us” – and of our resolve to meet challenges, old and new.
As prepared for delivery.