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Southeastern Louisiana University
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Date: 4/29/99
Contact: Tim Ardillo 1
MAURICE TEMPELSMAN PRESENTS SOUTHEASTERN'S MORRISON LECTURE
HAMMOND -- International financier and diamond merchant Maurice Tempelsman
presented Southeastern Louisiana University's fifth annual James H. Morrison Lecture on
Politics
and Government yesterday (4/28/99).
Tempelsman's lecture to faculty, staff, students and community business leaders explored
the continuing role and responsibility of the state in a free market system.
Sending a positive message to lecture attendees, Tempelsman said, "The world has
changed since the 1940's and as we approach the new century, let me add with anticipation and a
measure of optimism, it is useful to look at the one (century) that is just about to end. Let me
suggest we do so through the vision of Thomas Jefferson who said 'I like the dreams of the
future better than the history of the past.'"
He continued, "This century was generous, particularly in its closing years, to systems of
governance that struck a balance between the freedom needed to nurture individual initiative and
enterprise and the transparency and accountability essential to governance by consent. And, it
saw a greater confluence between the forces that shape politics and the forces that drive
economics."
The lecture, sponsored by Southeastern's Center for Regional Studies, honors Morrison,
who served in Congress for more than 20 years. Tempelsman said he accepted the invitation to
lecture at Southeastern because of his friendship with Congressman Morrison during the time
that "he was a distinguished member of the people's House with a great public service career
ahead of him."
Prior to the lecture, Tempelsman was the honored guest at a reception sponsored by the
Center and Southeastern President Sally Clausen. "Mr. Tempelsman has been an advisor to U.S.
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MORRISON LECTURE Add One
Presidents all the way back to Eisenhower," Clausen told the audience. "A friend of ours in
common told me that it was remarkable that he chose to speak at Southeastern. Speaking
publicly
at universities is just something his international schedule doesn't often allow him to do."
Tempelsman said to the audience at the beginning of the presentation that he was
"delighted" to be in Hammond because Southeastern is a great institution of learning, this visit
gave him an opportunity to honor his friends Congressman and Marjorie Morrison, and he
wanted to "come and see where the finest strawberries in the world are grown."
Tempelsman is senior partner in the firm of Leon Tempelsman & Son, a company active
in mining, investments and business development and minerals trading in Europe, Russia, Africa,
Latin America, Canada and the Far East. He also chairs the board of directors of Lazare Kaplan
International, Inc., one of the nation's foremost diamond houses. He serves on the International
Advisory Council of the American Stock Exchange and is a director of the Business Council for
International Understanding.
Tempelsman has served on several Presidential Commissions, including the President's
Commission for the Observance of Human Rights, the Citizen's Advisory Board of Youth
Opportunities and the National Highway Safety Advisory Committee. Most recently, he was
appointed by President Clinton as a director and was elected treasurer of the Southern Africa
Enterprise Development Fund. The Secretary of Commerce appointed him a member of the U.S.-
South Africa Business Development Committee.
The lecture was held at Southeastern's Ralph R. Pottle Music Building Auditorium at
10:30 a.m.
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Press release available on the World Wide Web:
www.selu.edu/NewsEvents/PublicInfoOffice/newsp99.htm