Open Society President Patrick Gaspard on the Meaning of Citizenship

Patrick Gaspard, president of the Open Society Foundations, was given the honor of a lifetime in late July: the NAACP’s 2019 Spingarn Medal, which is bestowed annually in recognition of outstanding achievement by an African American.

In his acceptance speech, Gaspard called on the next generation of activists: “Go where the silence is. Hear a stranger’s name and let it mean you. Go to where the silence is, and feel a child’s dying heartbeat at the border and let it be yours. Go to where the silence is, stand still, and speak where you sing.”