...in my meetings and my press events with the foreign minister and the president, I stressed how critical it is to respect the fundamental rights that democracy stands for: freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, the basic building blocks that people have a right to expect their government to respect and defend.
...in young democracies particularly, there’s a sense of personalized politics. People get so invested in candidates and in parties that are often closely identified with candidates. And it’s important in a democracy to work as hard as you can in an election but then try to close ranks as much as possible after an election.
She personifies all of that to me. She does not simply talk the talk She also walks the walk. I emphasized that line up there because I am one of the people who remains invested in the person who was my candidate in 2007 - 2008, this beautiful, brilliant, talented woman who brings her appreciable gifts to the service of all of us all over the world exemplifying the closing of ranks to which she refers.
So go to it! Good luck to all who enter.
Launch of Inaugural Democracy Photo Challenge
Office of the SpokesmanWashington, DC
July 7, 2010Department of State and its partners are expanding the global Democracy is… conversation on July 7 with the launch of the inaugural Democracy Photo Challenge. The contest asks people around the world to complete the phrase “Democracy is…” through digital photos submitted online. The Democracy is… conversation leverages social networks and creative challenges to engage people around the world to share, consider, debate, and learn from diverse perspectives on democracy, ultimately reflecting the voices of all of the world’s citizens.
Photo entries will be accepted at www.democracyphotochallenge.america.gov from July 7 through midnight GMT July 28, 2010. Democracy is… partners worked with Google’s Picasa Web Albums team to create the contest platform, the first of its kind, specifically to power the Democracy Photo Challenge. An independent jury will select 36 finalists, and the public will choose 12 winning photos through a global online vote beginning August 19, the International Day of Photography and continuing through midnight GMT August 26. The winners will be announced on the United Nations’ International Day of Democracy, September 15, 2010, with the winning photographs exhibited at the UN in New York and in other venues.
Finalists will represent each of world’s six geographic regions: Western Hemisphere, East Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa, Near East and South and Central Asia. The jury co-chairs are:
- Phil Borges, documentary photographer and founder of the nonprofit Bridges to Understandin
- Willis Hartshorn, Ehrenkranz director of the International Center of Photography
- Louie Psihoyos, Academy Award-winning documentary director (“The Cove”), photographer and executive director of the Oceanic Preservation Society
Background
The Democracy is… global conversation, created by a unique public-private partnership, leverages social networks and various creative tools to engage people around the world to share, consider, debate, and learn from diverse perspectives on democracy. The Democracy Photo Challenge was inspired by the Democracy Video Challenge, an annual contest launched in 2008 asking young people to complete the phrase “Democracy is…” through short online videos. Over the last two years, more than 1,600 people from 111 countries submitted entries and spurred the online engagement of nearly 3.5 million people. In addition to the 2010 Democracy Video Challenge, the Democracy is… project spawned a Twitter challenge in which more than 1,400 people from 30 countries participated.
People around the world can track updates and join the real-time democracy conversation online at: www.facebook.com/democracychallenge and www.twitter.com/demvidchallenge.
For more background information please send an email to IIPInquires@state.gov.
