Amidst the current global climate, why is teaching tolerance to today`s young people so crucial?
Dr. Sleeper: In this post-September 11th world, we see an enormous amount of hatred, intolerance, and violence. It is crucial to help young people realize it doesn`t have to be this way. We must put our faith and energy into teaching our students that their behavior towards one another can make a difference toward building tolerance, especially within the current global climate. GC: Throughout history there has always been intolerance. Why should we believe that the future could be any different? Dr. Sleeper: I don`t think we should believe that the future could be any different. There is certainly no reason why we should. In fact, when you look at the world today there are a lot of reasons to say that we shouldn`t. The intolerance, dogma and fanaticism in our post-September 11th world is overwhelming. What does that mean? I believe that it means that education is our only hope — education in this country and throughout the planet. Young people must understand that we live in a global
