The Memorial is beautiful and fitting. Located adjacent to the FDR memorial, the display shows Martin Luther King, Jr. as a towering figure moving out of a mountain.
He looks out across the tidal pool, and is surrounded by some of his most inspiring quotes. As I was preparing for my trip to better understand modern Europe, the relationship between nations, and our global economic challenges, this quote seemed especially appropriate:
I couldn't resist a quick walk through the FDR memorial before heading back to the hotel to change for the program. That meant I had to take a cab, which also turned out to be a thought provoking experience.
The cab driver asked me if I was Filipina. I told him I was not. He asked what my race was, and I told him Cacuasian. He insisted I was wrong, that I had to be Asian and he was pretty certain from the Phillipines. "Really. Is it your mother or your father? Who came from the Phillipines?" "Neither," I said. "They are both from Indiana." He then asked me if I was sure I wasn't adopted, and insisted that my dark hair and the shape of my eyes made it clear that I was Filipina. He made some interesting points, but I'm pretty sure I'm a Hoosier.
The discussion made me wonder what assumptions people make about one and other in an EU without borders. Is it easy to distinguish the Dane from the French from the Hungarian? Would a German ever be mistaken for a Greek? A Spaniard for an Italian? And why does our heritage matter? As it turned out, this would be the subject of much discussion in the days to come.
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