The Cosmopolitan Predicament   /   Fall 2009   /    From the Editor

Introduction

The Editors

In 2008, then Senator Barack Obama made what must surely be an unprecedented declaration for someone with serious designs on the U.S. presidency. To a crowd of cheering Berliners, he announced: “I speak to you not as a candidate for president, but as a citizen, a proud citizen of the United States and a fellow citizen of the world ” (italics added). In this echo of President John F. Kennedy’s famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech, Barack Obama went beyond Cold War-inspired solidarity and proclaimed himself a cosmopolitan.

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Reprinted from The Hedgehog Review 11.3 (Fall 2009). This essay may not be resold, reprinted, or redistributed for compensation of any kind without prior written permission. Please contact The Hedgehog Review for further details.