US campaign to commemorate Greece’s Bicentennial USA & Greece anniversary

The US will celebrate Greece’s Bicentennial in 2021 with a series of educational and cultural events to mark 200 years of friendship and amity between the two nations, the US Ambassador to Greece, Geoffrey Pyatt announced, according to greekreporter.com.

The celebration, entitled “USA & Greece: Celebrating 200 Years of Friendship” was launched in an interview with the Greek national broadcaster ERT. The US Mission in Greece’s year-long campaign to commemorate Greece’s Bicentennial will mark the many similarities of the two democracies, which are almost the same age.

Landmark bicentennial celebration

The campaign will feature educational and cultural events across Greece that will highlight our two countries’ historic relationship and the ties that bind us, Pyatt said including democracy, partnership, and shared values.

Ambassador Pyatt’s announcement followed the launch of the “Greece 2021” Committee’s campaign on January 1 to commemorate this landmark anniversary of 200 years since the Greek Revolution of 1821, with programs to mark Greece’s history, honor its people, highlight its achievements, and envision its future.

The “USA & Greece: Celebrating 200 Years of Friendship” campaign will support this effort through programs designed to convey the US’ respect for ancient Greek ideals of democracy which Pyatt said “were an inspiration at the founding of our country” and will also highlight the role American Philhellenes played in Greece’s fight to establish the modern nation of Greece.

The commemoration will also honor the strong people-to-people ties between the U.S. and Greece over the last 200 years, and our commitment to our present-day strategic partnership, according to Pyatt. The American ambassador’s remarks can be read in full here.

Relations “best they’ve been in modern history”

Speaking about the campaign, the US Ambassador said effusively “US – Greek relations are the best they’ve been in modern history. Our friendship began during Greece’s war for independence and Greece’s 2021 bicentennial is an opportunity to celebrate this history and the values of liberty and democracy our peoples have defended for over 200 years.”

The US Mission in Athens will fund several programs throughout 2021, partnering with Greek and American civil society, educational, and arts institutions. Program dates and further details about specific programs will be provided on the US Embassy website throughout the year at gr.usembassy.gov.

Entrepreneurship, cultural, scientific events

Some of the events which are part of the “ USA & Greece: Celebrating 200 Years of Friendship” programs are the following:

⦁ Virtual Entrepreneurship Project “Connect the Dots” : A virtual entrepreneurship mentoring program conducted in partnership with The Hellenic Initiative (THI), this program will provide online mentorship by US business leaders to Greek entrepreneurs. This program is under the auspices of the “Greece 2021” Committee.

⦁ Athens Science Festival 2021 – 200 Years of Innovation: An experiential space will be created, comprising multiple exhibits that refer to the historical anniversary and the evolution of the Greek state, highlighting areas of shared scientific excellence with the US and featuring prominent American speakers. This program is also under the auspices of the “Greece 2021” Committee.

⦁ Greek National Opera, Stavros Niarchos Hall: The Greek National Opera will present two special musical performances of works reflecting the shared values of the US and Greece.

⦁ The “American Philhellenism” Exhibition  at the Museum of Philhellenism: A special exhibition entitled  “American Philhellenism” at the Museum of Philhellenism in Athens will feature unique artifacts and historical documents capturing the birth and evolution of Philhellenism, US support for the Greek Revolution, and the impact of Greek culture on the values, institutions, artistic and architectural expressions in the US.

⦁ An exhibition titled “The Free and the Brave: American Philhellenes and the Glorious Struggle of the Greeks (1776-1866)” will be shown at the Gennadius Library, American School of Classical Studies at Athens. This exhibition will explore the Philhellenism movement that flourished in the US in the nineteenth century, influenced by Greek classical thought and democratic ideals.

⦁ American Studies: Scholarships will be awarded towards the establishment of an American Studies curriculum at a Greek university.

⦁ “Greek Fire,” a seminar that will be held at the Delphi Economic Forum and an online report created on the lasting impact that the Greek Revolution has had on American culture and politics.

⦁ City of Sparta: Sparta will host a conference on American Philhellenes and conduct a range of programs throughout 2021 to commemorate the bicentennial.

⦁ US Consulate General Thessaloniki: An exhibit that chronicles the history of the Consulate General and the US presence in Greece’s second-largest city will be on display.

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