Is Rudy Giuliani really a glamorous Hero?

Abstract or Introduction

When the town Baden-Baden gave the German Media Price to Rudy Giuliani in February 2002, I was very surprised. Certainly the price was awarded for Giuliani′s great Leadership in very difficult times, but how could the committee have forgotten everything what happened before September 11th? Had Rudy Giuliani, a man who was criticized especially in Germany for his merciless behaviour toward homeless people and minority groups, now also become a hero in Germany? Before deciding what kind of character Rudy Giuliani really is, it is important to take a closer look at his background and political career.

Rudolph W. Giuliani was born in a working class family in Brooklyn, New York in 1944. He is the grandson of Italian immigrants. He attended Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School (Class of ′61) in Brooklyn. In high school Giuliani had been what Americans call an "extracurricular activity junkie" (Barret and Fifield 34). He was a member of the baseball and weightlifting teams. He participated in a charity club, and even as a freshman he liked to take on responsibility and was voted homeroom president. As he grew older his interest in politics increased and he spent long nights with friends "discussing philosophy, religion and politics" (Barret and Fifield 35). In those discussions Giuliani always claimed to be a young man with very high moral standards. At the end of his senior year he was awarded "Class Politician" (Barret and Fifield 36) by his classmates. At that time nobody could have known how right their decision was. In the fall of 1961 Giuliani enrolled in Manhattan College (Class of ′65) in the Bronx. The atmosphere at the all-male college was similar to his high school. There was a mandatory dress code, tardiness was treated harshly, liquor was banned from campus and women were not allowed in the dormitories. Rudy Giuliani graduated in 1965 with honors but not with magna cum laude, a fact he often emphasizes. In the fall of 1965 Giuliani entered Law school at New York University (Barret and Fifield 37-41).

Rudy was already politically active at that time and a classmate remembers him as a "real Robert F. Kennedy democrat, a liberal, except on law and order" (Barret and Fifield 53). Giuliani had deeply admired Bobby Kennedy and when he was murdered "[he] thought [his] presence in national politics was irreplaceable" (Barret and Fifield 55) [...]