Public Service
On our blog, we share our Quote of the Week as well as other insights about our work and about our community. As our society continues to struggle with some of the same issues that Sargent Shriver focused on -- poverty, racism, inequality, war -- we believe it's important to share our stories with each other. Do you have a story to share about Sargent Shriver or about one of the issues he cared about? Share your story with us by emailing it to info@sargentshriver.org. Maybe we'll post it here!
May
19
Politics as "a competition of ideas and dreams"
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week defines, quite simply, what politics should and should not be. It prompts us to aspire to a human-centric politics, of service that aims at building peace.Shriver gave his Commencement Address at Proctor Academy in 1973, just as the Watergate investigation, which led to...
May
12
"The issue that haunts me is this ..."
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
In our Quote of the Week, Sargent Shriver shares what he sees as our most basic needs and desires, and he expresses the concern that we are not capable of fulfilling these for each other. Ultimately, however, Shriver has confidence in what he refers to as "humanism", the ability...
Apr
14
Media as a Public Good
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week reminds us of the media's role in keeping us informed about matters of public interest, both in everyday matters and in exceptional moments. With this role comes a great deal of responsibility and power. In a 1957 speech he gave as the head of Chicago's Board of...
Apr
07
The "Cure" for the "Sickness of the National Spirit"
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week suggests that we will not thrive as a society if we support leaders who favor partisanship over problem-solving. We need clear-eyed, honest leaders who believe in the potential we all have to summon, in the words of Lincoln, "the better angels of our nature&...
Dec
20
Love as a Power
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week asks us to consider love as a power. As we make our way through the holiday season, we summon the power of love to guide us in our private lives as well as in our public actions as citizens.In his electric and free-wheeling 1967 Address at the University of California,...
Dec
06
Wishing You Happiness ...
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week expresses a quintessentially Shriveresque wish for the happiness of his audience, a happiness that includes the ability to serve others.This week’s quote comes from a very early speech of Sargent Shriver’s, the 1956 Speech to YMCA Youth Citizenship Luncheon. It is one of...
Nov
01
"The new problems which should be challenging our imagination"
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week makes a prescient observation about the priorities for preserving our collective well-being. And it underlines a truth that we can no longer afford to ignore: to overcome our global challenges, nations must work together.In 1975, Sargent Shriver gave this Speech to the...
Nov
15
The Importance of Human-centric Diplomacy
by Sargent Shriver Peace Institute
Our Quote of the Week exemplifies the kind of diplomacy that Sargent Shriver conducted throughout his career. Underlining issues of human rights and injustice that affect all too many people around the world, and making a dynamic call to action to those "who are gathered", Shriver...
