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While the liberal project of toleration and the postmodern emphasis on diverse perspective still pervade our national consciousness, perhaps with more urgency than before, we aspire to reclaim a unity of purpose that would fulfill the promises of our national myth … America seeks not only to absorb the authenticity of its constituent communities but also to achieve its own internal authenticity.  As Lionel Trilling reminds us in the context of artistic culture, the quest for authenticity is an inherently powerful and even violent project, requiring an extreme exercise of personal will to overcome the sentiment of nonbeing.  

-  Susan Scafidi, Who Owns Culture?