At its Centennial Celebration gala dinner on March 10, 2022, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs honored President Barack Obama and cellist Yo-Yo Ma for their extraordinary contributions toward creating a more open and promising world for all. They joined DePaul University's Carol Marin in a conversation reflecting on the current state of the world and looking toward the next 100 years of engagement in global affairs.

“What we’re seeing now is a reminder that there is a direct connection between our problems here at home and what happens overseas," said President Obama.

"It turns out that the same instincts towards authoritarianism, the same instincts of xenophobia, of ‘us versus them,’ of tribalism, of division, the same manipulation of information and media, the same suppression of conscience and dissent... those forces that in our country we’ve seen weaken our democracy, well that’s happening elsewhere. And that doesn’t necessarily mean that we have to (or have the capacity to) police the entire world. But what it does mean is that what we stand for here and what we stand for overseas has a direct connection.

When asked how he keeps hope alive in an America that can test it, Yo-Yo answered: “By talking to ordinary people everywhere and finding out what their stories are.

“We all say we have heroes and models and that’s true. But actually, if you go around anywhere into any neighborhood, and you start to figure out what people’s stories are and what they do in their daily lives, if you’re a single mother with three kids […] you see what kind of heroism is involved."

Yo-Yo Ma ended the evening by playing the Ukrainian national anthem and a selection of inspirational pieces.
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