Dear speech-fans and -friends,
September means back to school, back to
work and, for world leaders, back to the United Nations General Assembly. This
annual gathering gives the floor to the largest variety of speakers, with one
common goal : describe the world and the challenges ahead in just a few
minutes to the widest possible audience and get this message across. You will
find a selection below.
In Europe, September means back to the
European Parliament for the State of the European Union. This address, together
with the Brexit negotiations and other topical issues, also calls for clear and
powerful messages.
And for speechwriters, autumn means back to
the Professional Speechwriters Association World Conference. This year, moved
from September to October. We will be there, with for sure a fruitful harvest
next month. Stay tuned.
In the meantime, you will find quotes, tips and books on: logospathosethos.eu
Isabelle
I am here in a spirit of gratitude and
humility for the trust you have placed in me to serve the world’s peoples.
“We the peoples”, and the United Nations,
face grave challenges.
Our world is in trouble. People are hurting
and angry. They see insecurity rising, inequality growing, conflict spreading
and climate changing.
The global economy is increasingly
integrated, but our sense of global community may be disintegrating.
Societies are fragmented. Political
discourse is polarized. Trust within and among countries is being driven down
by those who demonize and divide.
We are a world in pieces. We need to be a
world at peace.
And I strongly believe that, together, we
can build peace. We can restore trust and create a better world for all.
Read the full speech here: Antonio Guterres, Address to the General Assembly,
19 September 2017
The wind is back in Europe's sails.
We now have a window of opportunity but it will not stay open forever.
Let us make the most of the momentum, catch the wind in our sails.
Read the full speech (available
in the 24 official languages) here: Jean-Claude Juncker, State of the European Union
address, 13 September 2017
The future of the Union is our priority,
not Brexit.
Read the full speech here: Michel Barnier, Italian Parliament, 21 September
2017
Of course, we recognise that we can’t leave
the EU and have everything stay the same. Life for us will be different.
But what we do want – and what we hope that
you, our European friends, want too – is to stay as partners who carry on working
together for our mutual benefit.
In short, we want to work hand in hand with
the European Union, rather than as part of the European Union.
Read the full speech here: Theresa May, Florence speech: a new era of
cooperation and partnership between the UK and the EU, 22 September 2017
At the
end of the day, the only ones who could determine the fate of the Polish nation
are the Polish people. We cannot do that, none of us. But what we can do and
what we must do, what we are obliged to do, is to say, when we are of the
opinion that Treaties signed and ratified by Member States are being violated,
we need to step in and say that this is the case. I think it would be a
dereliction of duty on the part of the Commission if we were not to do that. It
is my duty to do it, it is the Commission's duty to do it. And let me just say
– for the sake of clarity because I have seen quite lot of that - this is not a
personal issue. This is not me talking. When I speak, I speak on behalf of the
Commission, and the Commission is united on this. And when I speak, I also
speak on behalf of what I see is the thinking of many many Member States. And
may I add today since I am here (before the European Parliament), that after
having listened to you, I have the impression I also speak on behalf of a
majority of the European Parliament when I talk about this.
Read the full speech here: Frans Timmermans, on the Rule of Law in Poland,
European Parliament, 31 August 2017
Time and time again we have no courage to
enforce the rules that we ourselves create. We draw red lines in the sand and
then pretend they don't exist.
This has to change. Bullies are aggressive
precisely because they are weak and insecure. That is why we must stop being
passive observers and start calling things by their own names.
Aggression cannot make anyone stronger. It
can never earn anyone even a drop of respect. The only thing the aggression
will bring is contempt, shame and condemnation.
Read the full speech here: Dalia Grybauskaity, United Nations General
Assembly, 19 September 2017
(English below)
Le devoir de la France est de parler pour
ceux qu’on n’entend pas. Car parler pour eux, c’est aussi parler pour nous,
aujourd’hui ou demain. Et en ce jour, ce sont ces voix oubliées que je veux
porter.
J’ai entendu Bana, citoyenne d’Alep, et
c’est sa voix que je veux ici porter. Elle a vécu sous la terreur des
bombardements, des polices et des milices, elle a connu les camps de réfugiés.
(…)
J’ai entendu Ousmane, écolier à Gao, et
c’est sa voix que je veux ici porter. Son enfance se passe au Mali dans la
hantise des attentats aveugles. Et pourtant, son seul rêve est d’aller à l’école
sans risquer la mort. (…)
J’ai entendu aussi Kouamé, et c’est sa voix
que je veux ici porter. Jeté sur les routes, il a traversé l’Afrique avant de
remettre son sort en Libye entre les mains de passeurs.
Je parle enfin au nom de Jules, mon
compatriote, vivant sur l’île de Saint-Martin, je songe à sa maison détruite, à
sa peur que cela ne recommence encore et encore parce que le réchauffement
climatique multiplie les catastrophes. L’avenir du monde c’est celui de notre
planète qui est en train de se venger de la folie des hommes, la nature nous
rappelle à l’ordre et nous intime d’assumer notre devoir d’humanité et de
solidarité. (…)
Mesdames et Messieurs, derrière chacune de
nos décisions il y a ces voix, il y a ces vies, il y a le cortège invisible de
ceux que nous devons défendre parce qu’un jour on nous a nous- mêmes défendus.
Ne pas écouter ces voix, c’est croire que
leur misère n’est pas la nôtre. Que nous posséderons pour toujours les biens
dont ils ne pourront que rêver. Mais lorsque ce bien, c’est la planète, lorsque
ce bien, c’est la paix, la justice, la liberté, pensez-vous que nous puissions
en jouir seuls, dans un coin ?
Nous n’avons qu’un courage à avoir,
Mesdames et Messieurs, celui d’entendre ces voix, celui de ne pas dévier de la
trace que nous devons laisser dans l’Histoire et celui, à chaque instant, de
considérer que nous devons réconcilier notre intérêt et nos valeurs, notre
sécurité et les biens communs de la planète. Notre génération n’a pas le choix,
car elle doit parler pour aujourd’hui et pour demain.
Read the full speech (en
français) here: Emmanuel Macron, Assemblée générale des Nations
Unies, 19 September 2017
Read
the full speech in English here:
Emmanuel Macron, General Assembly, 19 September
2017
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