Michael Barnett is University Professor of International Affairs and Political Science at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. Currently, he is an Associate Editor of International Organization. Among his books are Rules for the World: International Organizations in World Politics (with Martha Finnemore), Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda, and Empire of Humanity: A History of Humanitarianism.
How do American Jews envision their role in the world? Are they tribal—a people whose obligations extend solely to their own? Or are they prophetic—a light unto nations, working to repair the world? The Star and the Stripes is an original, provocative interpretation of the effects of these worldviews on the foreign policy beliefs of American Jews since the nineteenth century. He argues that it all begins with the political identity of American Jews. As Jews, they are committed to their people’s survival. As Americans, they identify with, and believe their survival depends on, the American principles of liberalism, religious freedom, and pluralism. This identity and search for inclusion form a political theology of prophetic Judaism that emphasizes the historic mission of Jews to help create a world of peace and justice. This political theology accounts for two enduring features of the foreign policy beliefs of American Jews. They exhibit a cosmopolitan sensibility, advocating on behalf of human rights, humanitarianism, and international law and organizations. They also are suspicious of nationalism—including their own. Contrary to the conventional wisdom that American Jews are natural-born Jewish nationalists, Barnett charts a long history of ambivalence; this ambivalence connects their early rejection of Zionism with the current debate regarding their attachment to Israel. And, Barnett contends, this growing ambivalence also explains the rising popularity of humanitarian and social justice movements among American Jews. Rooted in the understanding of how history shapes a political community’s sense of the world, The Star and the Stripes is a bold reading of the past, present, and possible future foreign policies of American Jews.
The lecture will be followed by a reception from 7:00-8:00 pm in the South House Lounge, 1 Devonshire Place.
Monday, 7 March 2016 – 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Vivian and David Campbell Conference Facility
Munk School of Global Affairs – 1 Devonshire Place, Toronto
Register: http://munkschool.utoronto.ca/event/19903/register
For more information: sylvia.adler@utoronto.ca