Red, White, and Blue Coming Together

Red, White, and Blue Coming Together was an initiative focused on uniting America behind a common vision of our role in the world. After a bitter election season that brought attention to the divisions between "red" and "blue" America, this series attempted to begin the healing process by raising awareness about the hidden consensus that already exists in a number of key foreign policy areas and by facilitating constructive, nonpartisan dialogue on more controversial issues.

The Stanley Foundation, Americans for Informed Democracy, and the United Nations Foundation joined together to coordinate more than a dozen town hall meetings across America in April and May to raise awareness and begin a grassroots discussion about the report of the secretary-general's High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges, and Change.

Reforming the UN for a Safer World: The Town Hall Meetings

The town hall meetings were the second half of Red, White, and Blue Coming Together. In particular, the town hall meetings focused on the future of US-UN relations. These town halls aimed to identify whether common ground exists on how the United Nations can be reformed to advance US and world security. In December 2004 a high-level UN panel announced a series of recommendations for UN reform and Kofi Annan released his report in March 2005. The town halls put these recommendations to a cross-sample of Americans to see if there is consensus among the US public for these reforms.

The town hall series, Reforming the UN for a Safer World, brought world leaders and top scholars together with students and concerned citizens for constructive, nonpartisan dialogue on the future of the UN system. The events opened with brief presentations by these distinguished leaders, then gave audience members a chance to ask questions and briefly share their own views.

Among the speakers at these town hall meetings: former US ambassadors to the United Nations Thomas Pickering, Nancy Soderberg, and Richard Williamson; Gareth Evans, president and CEO of the International Crisis Group; Phebe Marr, a fellow at the US Institute of Peace and an Iraq specialist; and Gillian Sorensen, a senior advisor at the United Nations Foundation.

George F. Kennan Forum on International Affairs

One of the stops on the Red, White, and Blue Comming Together tour was the George F. Kennan Forum on International Affairs at Milwaukee's Pabst Theater on April 26, 2005. Gareth Evans and Gillian Sorensen debate "The future of the United Nations," moderated by Ben Merens of Wisconsin Public Radio.

Video (requires realPlayer)

1. Introductions by Ben Merens, Robert Ricigliano, and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (length 8:45)
2. Opening remarks by Gareth Evans and Gillian Sorensen (length 22:42)
3. Questions from the audience (length 1:03:20)
4. Closing remarks by Gillian Sorensen and Gareth Evans (length 12:18)

Ben Merens Show live radio coverage (requires realPlayer)

1. First Hour (length 51:49)
2. Second Hour (length 51:50)