Last week, Tuesday, we were invited to Friday’s annual Founder’s Day gala
event for the U. Common at many higher ed. institutions, I guess, Founder’s Day is a ceremonial gesture at legacy, self-definition of the institution and, of course, fundraising. We accepted two seats; would be sitting among friends at a table sponsored by an admirable company who didn’t have many people wanting to go.  So we lined Ph. up with a sitter (er, attendant, now that he’s a teen), and went on our well-dressed way.  

The theme for the night was globalism. Small, blue sponge balls lined with latitude and longitude, but without continental shapes were propped in the centerpieces, for example.  They started the program with forty
international students–most of whom I know by name–marching into the banquet
room with the flags of the 98 countries represented by students who attend the
institution.  Two at a time.  The flags didn’t match with the
students’ home-countries of record, since there were 40 students and 98
flags.  They came, two by two, a row of symbolic internationalism
choreographed to Neil Diamond’s "America."

Far
We’ve been traveling far
Without a home
But not without a star

The students propped their flags at the front of the hall and returned to the
back entrance to carry forward another pair of flags: Sweden and Mexico followed
by Brazil and Greece followed by Australia and Eritrea, marching fast-paced to
Neil Diamond.

On the boats and on the planes
They’re coming to America
Never looking back again
They’re coming to America

I just want to be descriptive here; present the details they played out
before me, because there’s plenty of room for critique (of the gushing,
centrist-nationalism vibe, for one)–critique that I would never want to
undertake at my otherwise well-intentioned, upstanding, play-it-safe weblog.  

Home, to a new and a shiny place
Make our bed, and we’ll say our grace
Freedom’s light burning warm
Freedom’s light burning warm

Of course, there was more to the evening than the opening ceremony and flag
parade (which left many of the students breathing hard; the pace was jogable). 
A couple of really impressive piano performances, a delectable entree (Petite
Filet of Beef with a Three Corn Pepper Sauce and Shrimp Bercy atop Wilted Greens
goes the menu card), an award presentation for distinguished leadership, and
plenty of tippling filled up the night.  It was the second Founders Day
gala for me in seven years.  Just as I was before, on Friday I was
underdressed.  I had a tie, but I harbor an aversion to suit coats when
it’s above 60 degrees.  Many of the gents were in tuxes.

It’d be inappropriate for me to raze the event for its challenges engaging
internationalism and globalism in their complexities; in fairness, I can’t
conclude that any of it was mal-intended (yet I understand that the best
intentions do not absolve responsibility for proliferating views and
values).  But it left me wondering about the resonant gravity of terms such
as internationalism and globalism to reinvent and revive centrism
and nationalism as the ideological linch pins of supposedly progressive
plans. Could’ve been the wine.