jeff aitken posted a beautiful invitation today…
…set aside the dynamics of the US presidential election. those who can vote can make a choice anytime, including election day.
in our opinion this is deeper, more important. we have the opportunity to say: this is how i imagine america. and we can learn how others imagine america too.
we purposefully offer the term america. it is somewhat provocative. we intend to invite many different perspectives. there are north americans, south americans, central americans. there are those who say america is the US; those for whom america conjures a kind of dream, an aspiration; those for whom america is an imported term, laid on top of a place with other, older names. there are many other perspectives. we would like to learn whether the term is more provocative than useful. and also, whether it’s more impactful to imagine one’s city or region than to imagine america.
we honor bliss and michael and their colleagues with imagine chicago, and the other imagine projects around the world. we also honor three recent evening events called imagine america, which highlighted talks by visionaries from the US.
we will meet in open space. how do you imagine america? what are the issues and opportunities for america’s future? some gatherings will begin in san francisco in may. proceedings will be posted online. you are invited to come, or start your own gatherings. more details to come.
if you are in range of chicago and want to be part of gathering here, see this page!
and a wee bit funny that they would proudly call themselves by an italian name! …giannini… sounds italian… hmmm… you italian guys really get around… how’s malawi?
Back when Quebec was going to seperate from Canada, the Cree said that if that happened, they would reclaim the word “Quebec” and use it to describe their homelands. It’s a Cree word after all.
When the Quebecois raised a stink and asked what Quebec should be called then, the Grand Chief of Crees suggested “New France.”
rotflmao
just a wee little note: my Navajo friends call themselves, proudly, Americans and the whites, Anglos.
me too!