U.S. and France ponder future of democracy
Archived article from Nov 5, 1999
By Douglas Frank
President Francis L. Lawrence welcomed an international group of scholars, diplomats and political leaders to the plenary session of the second of "Two Forums on Democracy," an official program of the White House Millennium Council and its French counterpart, the Mission 2000 Commission.
The conference took place Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 28 to 31, in the Alexander Library. Rutgers' Walt Whitman Center for the Culture and Politics of Democracy, under the direction of Professor Benjamin Barber, hosted and co-sponsored the event, which was part of Rutgers' Millennium Project. The first forum was held in Quimper, France, in May under the auspices of Mission 2000.
"For me, this multidisciplinary program represents the true spirit of globalism: two countries working together to address one of the important issues facing us, the future of democracy," Lawrence said. "Though this conference focuses on France and the United States, it is really a lens that focuses on larger issues of law and technology, military and economic strategy, and civil society."
France's ambassador to Washington, François Bujon de l'Estang, provided the conference's opening address, telling the group that the relationship between France and the United States is a paradox.
"On the one hand, France and the United States are really the closest of allies and the oldest allies. And yet, a kind of adversarial relationship surfaces time and again in all kinds of problems," he said.
As the "two daughters of the Age of Enlightenment" move toward the 21st century, "we should never lose sight of one thing -- that is, whatever the difficulties or differences, what brings us together, what we have in common, is much more important than what separates or sometimes provokes us," the ambassador said.
Although unable to attend the conference in person, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, chair of the White House Millennium Council, spoke to the gathering via videotape.
"Our two sister republics are joined not only by shared history and values, but also by the shared challenges we have always faced in living up to our ideals of justice, freedom, equality and democracy," she said.
Others taking part in the conference were former French Prime Minister Michel Rocard, the current European Union representative; Antony Blinken, special assistant to the president and senior director for European affairs at the National Security Council; Professor Jean Leca from the Institut d'Études Politiques, Paris, and former chair of the International Political Science Association; Jean Daniel, editor in chief of Le Nouvel Observateur, Paris; and Ellen McCulloch-Lovell, deputy assistant to President Clinton and adviser to Mrs. Clinton on the millennium.
Sessions at Rutgers included: "The New Tocqueville," "The New Globalism" and "The New Politics of Justice and Democracy." Panels focused on "America in the Eyes of France," "France in the Eyes of America," "Is the Global Arena Economic or Civic?," "Law, Privacy, Media and the Challenge of Technology" and "Egalité, Fraternité, or only Liberté?" Panelists included scholars, journalists, practitioners and policy-makers.
The White House Millennium Council, Rutgers Global Programs and French Cultural Services, New York, joined the Walt Whitman Center and Mission 2000 as sponsors. The Howard Gilman Foundation, New York, provided major funding.
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