Meet Jim Leach

The Common Ground Awards are coming up (November 11).  If you’d like to come, get your tickets now!

“How we lead or fail to lead in an interdependent world will be directly related to how we comprehend our own history, values, and diversity of experiences, and how deeply we come to understand and respect other peoples and societies. Citizenship is hard. It takes a willingness to listen, watch, read, and think in ways that allow the imagination to put one person in the shoes of another.” –Jim Leach, “Bridging Cultures” address to the National Press Club, November 20, 2009.

This week we are showcasing Jim Leach, the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), who will be a recipient of a Common Ground Award for his national civility tour calling for respect for all and a renewal of the American spirit in public discourse.

Mr. Leach has a long history of public service: before being nominated to chair the NEH by President Obama in July 2009, he represented Iowa in the House of Representatives for 30 years, founding and co-chairing the Congressional Humanities Caucus.  Following his retirement from Congress, he was the John L. Weinberg Visiting Professor of Public and International Affairs at Princeton and the interim director of the Institute of Politics and lecturer at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

His resume is impressive, and his list of honors and accolades speak to both his intelligence and his integrity.  Search for Common Ground is proud to highlight one of his projects with the NEH: the American Civility Tour.  Over the course of two years, Mr. Leach is traveling to all 50 states with the message that, “Civilization requires civility. Words matter. Just as polarizing attitudes can jeopardize social cohesion and even public safety, healing approaches such as Lincoln’s call for a new direction “with malice toward none” can uplift and help bring society and the world closer together. “

Watch his thoughtful speech on “Bridging Cultures,” where he discusses the impetus behind the Tour and why words matter here.

You can also read a transcript of his speech here.