Explorations in Black Leadership

Co-Directed by Phyllis Leffler & Julian Bond

Leadership Development: Learning From Other Cultures

BOND: What has being involved in this organization which has this large international focus done to broaden your own horizons?

SELLERS: Well, I could not tell you —

BOND: Was this something you thought about a great deal before you were approached?

SELLERS: Well, no. It’s not something I thought about, but I was reading books and attempting to expand my worldview because I felt as if that may be important if I was going to pursue some type of career in politics and it’s like the opportunity just knocked on my door. So I had to take it and it was an opportunity that provided me the resources to learn. I can’t devalue that or underestimate that because I was able to learn so much and have been able to learn so much over the past seven or eight years and they’ve been trying to get me to go to Israel, but things just have never worked out. My mom was either having knee surgery or I had to be in court or something like that, but — and I want to go. I mean, I think everyone should just sit back and try to learn about other cultures. I think that’s so important. I think that’s something we don’t do enough of.

And I’m familiar with other organizations that have sprouted out, sprouted up about various issues and I don’t have any opinion one way or another about these other organizations, but I do appreciate the relationship that America has with Israel, and I try to learn as much as possible about that relationship.