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Secretary Hillary Clinton Receives Rathenau Prize

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton today received the t Rathenau Prize.

At the awarding ceremony, Ms. Clinton stated that the Rathenau Prize prize represents Germany's continuing commitment to face the past with unflinching honesty and to work for a more tolerant, peaceful future.

"Americans greatly respect this commitment and we are very proud of our alliance with the German people. Along with our other allies in the transatlantic community, we are united - united by history, of course, but united by interests and values even more. We share a deep conviction that all people should have the freedom to pursue their God-given potential."-Ms. Clinton

Ms. Clinton dedicated the award to the millions of Americans and Germans who have worked for decades to cement their friendship.

Ms. Clinton said that Walter Rathenau's Germany was a nation in transition, struggling to build a stable democracy out of the ashes of conflict. Strident voices on both the left and the right advocated violent change. Rathenau and others like him worked to build a national consensus around solving the country's growing economic, political, and social challenges.

Rathenau's efforts were tragically cut short, and the work that he gave his life for was ultimately derailed by hateful extremists. In the end, that extremism and the intolerance and hatred it represented ripped apart not just Germany but all of Europe.

Ms. Clinton concluded that Walter Rathenau's life's work prompts the world to ask how people and leaders in the transitions now underway can build their countries up rather than pull them apart.

Source: U.S. Department of State