Forty-five years ago, Sen. Robert Kennedy delivered an address at the University of Cape Town. In the wake of their independence, RFK called on the young people of South Africa to use their imagination and courage to construct a world of which they would be proud.
Today, in a country that fac
es its own challenges, renewed leadership is similarly needed. In the midst of economic stagnation, American environmental credibility is under scrutiny, the poles of international power are shifting, and our social welfare programs groan under the duress of financial constraints. Collectively, such challenges endow the generation of students alongside whom I was proud to graduate this spring with a great moment of responsibility and opportunity.
Unfortunately, I fear that too many students feel pressured to become specialists and that as graduate school beckons we choose to pigeonhole ourselves within too narrow an area of expertise. We write dissertations on discrete aspects of biochemistry or philosophy, but are unsure how we feel about the recent health-care bill or illegal immigration. In short, we lack breadth.
In an increasingly complex world, it is ever more important that we strive not only to develop an acute understanding of the issues at hand, but also a clear set of values to guide our actions and set the tone for American policy. And so, to my fellow graduates and those who will join me in the years to come, I ask only that you keep your interests broad, maintain an open mind, and resolve to consider the big picture even as your specific expertise increases.
If, like the people of South Africa, we hope to contribute to a world of which we are proud, America will need more than specialists. We will need leaders. We need people with maturity and wisdom and character and purpose. More than anything, we need people with vision.
Brandon Merrell
Snohomish
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