The French-American Cultural Foundation’s Executive Director, Debra Dunn, recently sat down with Michael Poliakoff, President of the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, and David Smith, Founder and President of the Grateful American Foundation for a lively discussion centered around John and Abigail Adams.
Listen to the interview here
The focus of the conversation was on “the history of our nation, the relationship of France and America and America’s founding, and what we can all do to ensure that we produce citizens who understand our history, our successes, our failures, and our obligations to be the kind of citizens that take us forward,” said Michael Poliakoff. Mr. Poliakoff’s words embody what we at the French-American Cultural Foundation believe in — honoring the past, celebrating the present, and building for the future.
Debra Dunn said, “it’s an extraordinary history. They [the French] were some of our first immigrants. Many stayed. Many of the French that fought here decided to stay. So that was a beginning of another period too that Americans may not know. And of course, when you think about cultural trends, some of our first influences were brought, whether it was horticulture or it was wine or some music, literature, were brought over by Thomas Jefferson or were brought on some of the ships that were bringing back supplies. So some of those cultural influences came from the French and we’ve been building on it ever since…let’s look at our historical beginnings and then how culture flowed from that, and how it has continued over the past 300 years. There are so many things that are dear and important to Americans of all decades that have come from French influences.”
This fantastic conversation includes a discussion about Mr. Smith’s new book, Abigail & John, and the effect these two pivotal figures had on our history.
Read more via Grateful American Foundation: Author David Bruce Smith and Debra Dunn, Executive Director, French-American Cultural Foundation, Discuss Abigail & John