Speech #1000017176

As Plato wrote in "The Republic." "Democracy is a charming form - government. full of variety and disorder. and dispensing a kind of equality to equals and unequals alike." The skeleton which they assembled formed the body of American democracy two millenia later. which in turn became the foundation for democracy in dozens of countries worldwide--including Greecein two centuries since. In the United States. individuals of Greek origin have had a substantial impact in areas which run the gamut of American life. Since the great wave of Greek immigration to the United States in the early 1900s. Greeks have played instrumental roles in the sciences. the government. the military. the arts. and virtually all sectors of the American economy and culture. A recitation of great GreekAmericans is a recitation of great Americans: the family next door just as much as the exceptional leader.