Schemel Forum Luncheon - Leoluca Orlando: Identity & the Struggle between the Culture of Human Rights & the Mafia
Friday, 09 May, 2014
LEOLUCA ORLANDO, Ph.D.
Mayor of Palermo, Italy
Identity & the Struggle between the Culture of Human Rights & the Mafia
As Mayor of Palermo from 1985 to 1990 and 1993 to 2000 and returning to the position in 2012, Leoluca Orlando has dedicated his career to the rebirth of his beloved city after decades of Mafia rule. His brilliant civic strategy ignited a virtual Renaissance in Palermo, demonstrating the power of civil society to change the city’s trajectory from one of crime and corruption to one of justice, democracy and civil and human rights. Palermo’s story exemplifies Orlando’s leadership and the courage of its citizens to restore social and political values despite a looming threat of retaliation and fear.