Let's join together as next millennium nears

A few years ago, no one really thought much about the approaching millennium. We didn't trouble ourselves over the fact that we'd soon be dropping the "19" from the year and replacing it with a "20." But recently, people have become obsessed with the significance of this occurrence. We've begun to realize that in a few short years, we'll be witnessing -- and living in -- a rare historical moment, the conclusion of a century and a millennium.

References to the new millennium are every where -- in advertisements and marketing strategies, on web pages counting down the remaining seconds of the 20th century and in political speeches, including my own. People have devised projects with end dates set for the year 2000. And thousands have already booked reservations on cruise ships, at restaurant and in hotels for New Year's Eve, 1999.

We're all trying to figure out how to mark what in many ways is just a random moment in time. When midnight arrives on Jan. 1, 2000, or Jan. 1, 2001 -- experts can't quite agree on when the new millennium actually begins -- none of us will find ourselves suddenly transformed. We won't be trading our jeans and T-shirts for the space suits on Star Trek. And the only flashes in the night sky will be the fireworks we've already begun planning. (At least I hope so!) But I do think the coming of the year '00 presents us with a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the past, where we've been, who we are and what we hope to be.

Of the many millennium projects out there, one particularly excites me. Earlier this week, the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities presented Creative America, a report that proposes a nationwide millennium Initiative that will use this unique time in history to encourage Americans to celebrate and preserve the cultural achievements of the past, to raise awareness about the importance of the arts and humanities in our lives, and to examine the ideas, values and experiences that can shape our future.

When we look back on the last 2,000 years and try to understand what it was like to live in a certain age, we rely on the paintings, sculptures, architecture and literature created by the men and women of those times. The larger-than-life sculptures of the Roman emperors, for instance, tell us about their political might. The magnificent, intricately carved stone cathedrals of Europe testify to the power of faith and the church in the Middle Ages. And the strict adherence to rules of composition found in ancient Chinese poetry offers us insight into the rigid order imposed by traditional imperial society.

I believe that future generations, too, will look to our creative endeavors to tell them the story of America and of our times. Dorothea Lange's photographs of 1930s farm families and John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath record the trials and poverty of the Great Depression. The blues progressions and syncopated rhythms heard in popular music today hearken to the music of African slaves in the South. And Georgia O'Keefe's paintings of deserts, clouds and endless blue sky have captured for all time the landscape of the American Southwest.

Last summer, I toured Prague with Czech President Vaclav Havel. As we walked across the Charles Bridge, we fell into a discussion about American Culture, about how our greatest and world-transforming exports have been not only our ideas on democracy and the free market but our art, our jazz, our rock and roll. We didn't have to look too far for proof of this idea -- the young people perched on the bridge's balustrades were singing American folk songs and listening to heavy metal music as they read American books and magazines.

So it is imperative for all of us living at the end of the 20th century to encourage the preservation of artistic and intellectual works that will serve as our own unique legacy and our own message to the future. We must continue to nurture the talents of artists, musicians and scholars. And we must continue to support efforts that will allow the artistic potential of so many of our young people -- especially those living in some of our most depressed neighborhoods -- to grow and flourish.

The Millennium Initiative will be a year-long celebration of the arts and humanities beginning on Jan. 1, 2000, and ending on Jan. 1, 2001. In the coming months and years, the President will be calling upon all citizens, local communities, state governments, federal agencies and private-sector partners to create programs that reflect our unique cultural heritage. He'll be encouraging communities to identify and preserve their local traditions, history and folk art. He'll be asking us all to help make the resources of our museums and libraries more widely available on the Internet.

Through all these efforts, we can ensure that our country remains the world's strongest nation in the next millennium not only because of our wealth and military power but because of our thriving culture and our boundless creativity. As the President said in his State of the Union, "Our economy is measured in numbers and statistics, and it's very important. But the enduring worth of our nation lies in our shared values and our soaring spirit."

So let's join together in planning a millennial celebration for all time.

-- Creators Syndicate