The former head of Amnesty International USA will open the seventh season of Cape Ann Forum, which was organized in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to spur discussion of the United States' relations with the rest of the world.
The Rev. William Schulz will speak Sunday at City Hall about restoring the credibility of the United States.
Schulz, an ordained Unitarian Universalist minister, stepped down last year as executive director of Amnesty International USA, a job he held for 12 years, after which he moved from Long Island to Gloucester.
"I'm going to describe the ways in which the perception of America has changed," Schulz said in a telephone interview yesterday. "Ten years ago, the United States was warmly regarded by people from all corners of the world, and in the last few years it has seriously diminished."
The change in part is related to the post-Sept. 11 world, he said.
"Immediately after 9/11 there was great empathy," Schulz said. "But since then, because of decisions of the U.S. government, that support and warm regard has declined. I will talk about how to repair that and how the next president, Republican or Democrat, can take some important steps to begin to repair America's reputation," he said.
Dan Connell, the forum's chairman, said Schulz will bring a global awareness to these issues.
"I have tremendous respect for him. He will help us to look forward to bring us back on track," said Connell. "We've lost credibility to argue for rights because of our behavior. (Schulz) will talk about how we got into this position of isolation and what we can do to get back our credibility and respect."
Connell, too, has a long history of human rights activism, as a writer and journalist. He spent 30 years writing about social and political issues in Africa. He also worked in the Middle East. For the last five years, he has been a lecturer in journalism and African politics at Simmons College in Boston.
Schulz was a former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. As president, he led the first visit by a U.S. congressman to post-revolutionary Romania, a delegation that was instrumental in improving rights for Romanian religious and ethnic minorities. He also participated in missions to India, Liberia, Northern Ireland, Cuba and Darfur, Sudan.
The Rev. William Schulz will speak Sunday at City Hall about restoring the credibility of the United States.
Schulz, an ordained Unitarian Universalist minister, stepped down last year as executive director of Amnesty International USA, a job he held for 12 years, after which he moved from Long Island to Gloucester.
"I'm going to describe the ways in which the perception of America has changed," Schulz said in a telephone interview yesterday. "Ten years ago, the United States was warmly regarded by people from all corners of the world, and in the last few years it has seriously diminished."
The change in part is related to the post-Sept. 11 world, he said.
"Immediately after 9/11 there was great empathy," Schulz said. "But since then, because of decisions of the U.S. government, that support and warm regard has declined. I will talk about how to repair that and how the next president, Republican or Democrat, can take some important steps to begin to repair America's reputation," he said.
Dan Connell, the forum's chairman, said Schulz will bring a global awareness to these issues.
"I have tremendous respect for him. He will help us to look forward to bring us back on track," said Connell. "We've lost credibility to argue for rights because of our behavior. (Schulz) will talk about how we got into this position of isolation and what we can do to get back our credibility and respect."
Connell, too, has a long history of human rights activism, as a writer and journalist. He spent 30 years writing about social and political issues in Africa. He also worked in the Middle East. For the last five years, he has been a lecturer in journalism and African politics at Simmons College in Boston.
Schulz was a former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. As president, he led the first visit by a U.S. congressman to post-revolutionary Romania, a delegation that was instrumental in improving rights for Romanian religious and ethnic minorities. He also participated in missions to India, Liberia, Northern Ireland, Cuba and Darfur, Sudan.
Schulz is a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government; a senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C.; and an adjunct professor at the New School in New York City.
He has appeared on radio and television news shows, including "60 Minutes," "20/20" and "The Today Show." He has been published and quoted widely in newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, and The National Interest. Schulz is the author of "In Our Own Best Interest: How Defending Human Rights Benefits Us All" and "Tainted Legacy: 9/11 and the Ruin of Human Rights." His books will be on sale at the event.
The forum runs from 7 to 9 p.m. at Gloucester City Hall on Dale Avenue. The event is free and a public discussion will follow the talk.
This is the Cape Ann Forum's 42nd public event since the grassroots organization was launched after Sept. 11 to increase public understanding of international issues. The forum, a nonprofit entity, is run by volunteers and forum activities are supported solely by donations from those who participate. For more information, visit www.capeannforum.org.
Forum speakers
The Cape Ann Forum, now in its seventh season, will host six events this year, instead of the usual five. All events are free and take place at Gloucester City Hall at 7 p.m. A public discussion follows the speaker.
The schedule is as follows:
* Oct. 14: The Rev. William Schulz, an internationally known human rights activist, is former executive director of Amnesty International USA, and a former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association. He will speak on "Restoring America's Global Credibility."
* Oct. 21: Jeff Halper, an Israeli-Jewish peace activist, will talk on "The Key to Peace in Israel/Palestine: Dismantling the Matrix of Control." Halper, a founder of the Israeli Committee Against Home Demolitions and a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, will speak on why securing Palestinian rights is crucial to Israel's future.
* Nov. 18: Alan Weisman, author and journalist, will talk on "The World Without Us." A former Gloucester resident, Weisman constructed a bestselling book, titled "The World Without Us," around this premise. He explains how society's massive infrastructure would collapse and vanish; what of everyday stuff may become immortalized as fossils; and how plastic, radio waves, and man-made molecules may be the most lasting gifts to the universe. This event is cosponsored by The Bookstore of Gloucester.
* Feb. 10, 2008: Frances Moore Lappe, author of the 1971 bestseller "Diet for a Small Planet." She has written 16 books overall, some focused on food policy and food security. She also writes about issues of grassroots democracy.
* March 16, 2008: Joseph Gerson, New England program director for American Friends Service Committee, is a Quaker peace activist who will speak on nuclear issues.
* Date to be announced: Samantha Power, a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, has written about issues of genocide and preventing genocide.
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