During the past year, Clarksburg (WV) Councilmember Jim Hunt served as President of the NLC. His "theme" for the year was "Inclusive Communities."
Photo: NLC Past President Jim Hunt
Here's what Jim said on the NLC web site:
The National League of Cities and its members have worked together for over 12 years to promote equality and bring attention to issues of diversity and race relations. Yet, there is still much more to be done. We are building upon the work of previous leaders, raising awareness and focusing attention on the value of inclusive communities for all. Together as local government officials, concerned citizens, business leaders and youth, the Partnership for Working Toward Inclusive Communities can weave a creative, continuing, and sustainable partnership. The message is simple: embrace the power of “We” and make everyone feel welcome...
To see more, go to...
http://www.nlc.org/resources_for_cities/programs___services/7952.cfm
Jim's goal is something we should always strive to achieve. However, we should also keep our eye on what is happening in England. Even the British Labour Party is having second thoughts about "divisive multiculturalism" and "political correctness."
Photo: British Prime Minister Tony Blair
Tony Blair...
... The day after we won the Olympic bid came the terrorist attacks in London. These murders were carried out by British-born suicide bombers who had lived and been brought up in this country, who had received all its many advantages and yet who ultimately took their own lives and the lives of the wholly innocent, in the name of an ideology alien to everything this country stands for. Everything the Olympic bid symbolised was everything they hated. Their emphasis was not on shared values but separate ones, values based on a warped distortion of the faith of Islam. This ideology is not, of course, confined to Britain. It is a global phenomenon, long in the making and taking a long time to unmake. However, it has thrown into sharp relief, the nature of what we have called, with approval, "multicultural Britain". We like our diversity. But how do we react when that "difference" leads to separation and alienation from the values that define what we hold in common? For the first time in a generation there is an unease, an anxiety, even at points a resentment that our very openness, our willingness to welcome difference, our pride in being home to many cultures, is being used against us; abused, indeed, in order to harm us...
The complete speech by Blair can be found at...
