HW 30: "Citizenship and Responsibility"

Today, Thursday, November 8th I attended the "Citizenship and Responsibility" symposium. The opening speaker, Katrina sweat is the daughter of Tom Lantos, the only survivor of the holocaust that serves in the US Congress. Tom came to the United States after the Second World War. Katrina spoke a little bit about her father, whom she referred to as her "hero". In 1980, Tom ran for congress, later to introduce legislation, making him an honorary citizen of the United States. He spoke about how as he grew up, him and his siblings were taught that they were expected to make the world a better place. One thing that he said that I found interesting, yet at the same time I wasn't sure exactly what he meant by it or what his point was, was "men and women understood freedom was possible". He then refers to the famous quote "All men are created equal", but he makes a point by saying that this did not stop them from owning slaves, and how no one said anything including women. One thing that I found most interesting out of all the things he mentioned talking about so much US history and all, was that we are "living at a time where the image of the US is at an all time low", he speaks about how the United States forgot all the positive things that have been done and now only remember the negative. In the end Tom speaks about how our forthcoming president, has two responsibilities, one being that he must bring everything together, and secondly they must rebuild prestige and respect for the US. What I loved most was his dedication and he wanting to make things better for everyone in the United States with such determination should really inspire people.