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REMARKS BY:    DONNA E. SHALALA, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND 	
			   HUMAN SERVICES
PLACE:         Commencement at Florida A&M University,  	
               Tallahassee, Florida 
DATE:          April 27, 1996

In his first address to Congress after President Kennedy's assassination, Lyndon Johnson, with a heavy heart, told the American people: "All I have I would have given gladly not to be standing here today."

I feel the same. It is with both pride and sadness that I join all of you today: pride at having the opportunity to honor my good friend Ron Brown's memory by bringing you a message he would have approved and deep sadness that he is not here to do so himself -- to give his challenge to Florida A&M's class of 1996.

Secretary Brown had a theory about commencement speeches. He said they should have a good introduction and a good conclusion -- and the two should be as close together as possible! I understand that a commencement address does not have to be eternal to be immortal -- and I will try to heed his advice.

Secretary Brown's tragic death was more than America's loss -- it was the world's loss. The best Commerce Secretary we've ever had, he was a devoted husband and father; a consummate politician; a role model for all; a passionate advocate for young African Americans; and a true citizen of the world.

The columnist William Raspberry called him a "quintessential American."

Secretary Brown knew that "America was great, not in spite of our differences, but because of them." Always the "first," but never willing to be the last, he had that American audacity to dream big -- and the courage and skill to turn those dreams into reality all across the world.

Here was a global leader who moved with equal grace through the fast streets of New York and the small villages of South America.

From his first trade mission to his last, he understood that the economic opportunities of poor children in rural Florida -- and of teenagers in Harlem -- are inextricably linked to the opportunities of children living thousands of miles away in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.

And, he died believing government could -- and should -- be at the wheel of great change, anywhere in the world.

With infectious enthusiasm, Ron Brown played to win -- and he never ever gave up. As President Clinton so eloquently said: He "never saw a mountain he couldn't climb or a river he couldn't build a bridge across."

Building bridges of understanding between different continents and cultures, races and religions.

Building bridges from the narrow shores of "I" and "me" to the wide waters of "us" and "we."

And, building bridges from America's communities -- where he dedicated his life -- to devastated regions like the Balkans --where he laid down his life.

Today, you must finish the journey he so enthusiastically and heroically began.

He would have challenged you to build the most important bridge of all -- the bridge leading you from here to your own future and to the future of our globe. He would have asked you to think about the distance we have traveled together. In a 1994 commencement speech at Wilberforce University, Secretary Brown talked about the "powerful and encouraging changes underway in the world."

Just a decade ago, who would have imagined that we'd see:

The fall of the Berlin Wall. Nelson Mandela's glorious rise from prisoner to President in South Africa. And, the first seeds of peace -- however tenuous -- in the Middle East and Northern Ireland.

It was Secretary Brown who proclaimed: "I am an optimist. I have witnessed what belief and commitment can accomplish."

Belief and Commitment: He saw their fruits in his own life achievements. And, he saw their fruits in his own life work, as he fought tirelessly at President Clinton's side: Bringing in billions of dollars in contracts for U.S. businesses abroad -- and, helping to create 8.5 million new jobs -- and real opportunity for our families and communities -- here at home.

For Secretary Brown, part of loving America was challenging America to do better. And, if he were with us today, this talented man of politics and history, would tell us that our struggle is far from over.

He would tell us that Dr. King's dream has not yet been realized -- that real equality and real freedom do not yet reign.

Too many children still live in poverty.

Too many teenagers are having babies.

Too many young people are picking up guns and throwing away their futures.

Too many African Americans still face enormous barriers to good health, good education, and good jobs.

And, the ugly fire of racism still burns a hole in the beautiful tapestry that we call America.

In post Cold War America, Secretary Brown wrote that national security means economic security; that trade missions abroad mean jobs at home; and that the economic opportunities that we give poor children around the world today will determine all of our futures tomorrow.

He liked to say: "If the 50s and 60s were about sitting in the front of the bus, and the 70s and 80s were about running the city and the public transit authority; the 21st century is going to be about owning the bus company; about getting capital and support and education into our community and helping people control their economic destinies."

We all expected Secretary Brown to help lead us into that more prosperous 21st century. But leaders are not always given enough time to finish their tasks. Moses brought his people to the River Jordan. But it was left to Joshua to take them across.

Dr. King, on the night before he died preached, "I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know that we as a people will get to the Promised Land."

When Dr. King died, it was Secretary Brown's generation -- your parents' generation -- that answered the call and carried on Dr. King's fight for justice and opportunity.

Now the challenge is in your hands.

A great leader is gone -- but his vision and mission remain: A vision that says that "Democracy is not a spectator sport" -- and that the real power to create change lies within ourselves. It lies within you.

Right now, the debate that we are having in this country about the role of government -- is really a debate about who we are as Americans. It's about our nation's soul and character. It's about opportunity and hope. Whether the discussion is about health care or international trade, jobs or student loans, it's a debate about your future.

You are the agents of change -- you are our nation's best hope for the future. Secretary Brown has said to your generation, "We are counting on you, the smartest and most talented among us, to blaze new trails and make a better world for the next generation."

I hope that you will work in his spirit and accept his challenge.

Accept it by taking real pride in all you have accomplished -- and using your gifts to improve lives and communities around the world.

Accept it by tearing down the walls that still divide us by race and gender, religion and disability, class and sexual orientation.

Accept it by recognizing and loving everyone who held the door of opportunity open for you -- especially your parents and grandparents, uncles and aunts, sisters and brothers -- and by remembering to keep that door open for all who follow.

Accept it by becoming citizens of the world -- and working to ensure social justice, political power and economic opportunity for all.

Accept it by speaking up. Listening up. And for justice -- standing up.

Accept it by having fun. Yes, I said -- have fun.

There's an old Doonesbury cartoon where a father complains about his son wanting to have fun. The father says to his wife: "Life isn't to be enjoyed. It's to be gotten on with."

That's not true. Life is to be enjoyed. It's to be pushed and pulled, twisted and turned, embraced, shared -- and then passed on. And no one knew that better than my dear friend and colleague, Ron Brown.

For if he were here today, he would have told you this:

"If we plan and work and struggle together; if we keep the faith; if we empower others, liberate diversity, and fight for justice, then we can become all that we have historically been -- indispensable, constructive agitators for change."

So, Class of 1996 -- constructive agitators for change -- I know that you will meet Secretary Brown's challenge. And so for him I wish each of you uncomfortable lives -- full of adventure, great love, and good health.

Good luck and Godspeed.