Humanity has made two promises to its children
Annemarie Roeper died today.
I met Ms. Roeper only a few times, most recently over 15 years ago, so it would be disingenuous to say that she personally was a huge part of my life. But the influence of her work, her school and her ideas, on myself and countless others, could not be overstated.
Although less famous than Martin Luther King or Thurgood Marshall and less published than Douglas Adams or Christopher Hitchens, Ms. Roeper was second to no one as a clarion voice for the principles of humanism, compassion and free inquiry, and as a strident lifelong adversary to totalitarianism and dogmatism. I myself owe my life's ideas and dignity to the honorable institution she and her late husband George founded, and I'm sure that many, many other of their students could say the same. The Roeper School, which I had the privilege of attending, simultaneously fostered a profound respect for individuals, and an equally profound critical eye towards social institutions - exactly the opposite of the bias towards which the world too often trends. I have never before or since encountered an institution that so truly adhered to its stated principles. I could only wish for a life as honorable and important as hers; but if I have a chance at it, it is due to her influence.
I met Ms. Roeper only a few times, most recently over 15 years ago, so it would be disingenuous to say that she personally was a huge part of my life. But the influence of her work, her school and her ideas, on myself and countless others, could not be overstated.
Although less famous than Martin Luther King or Thurgood Marshall and less published than Douglas Adams or Christopher Hitchens, Ms. Roeper was second to no one as a clarion voice for the principles of humanism, compassion and free inquiry, and as a strident lifelong adversary to totalitarianism and dogmatism. I myself owe my life's ideas and dignity to the honorable institution she and her late husband George founded, and I'm sure that many, many other of their students could say the same. The Roeper School, which I had the privilege of attending, simultaneously fostered a profound respect for individuals, and an equally profound critical eye towards social institutions - exactly the opposite of the bias towards which the world too often trends. I have never before or since encountered an institution that so truly adhered to its stated principles. I could only wish for a life as honorable and important as hers; but if I have a chance at it, it is due to her influence.