Citizen Stan profiles the life of Stanley Sheinbaum, (1920-2016) a private Los Angeles citizen who shaped policy with Prime Ministers, Presidents and Kings. He used his negotiating skills at times in league with student leaders at Berkeley and gang leaders in LA.
As co-director of the Vietnam Project at Michigan State University in the early 1950s, Sheinbaum was hiring men who set up the police force of South Vietnam. His academic project wrote the constitution for South Vietnam. Later Stanley spoke out against the Vietnam War, holding teach-ins. He became the defense strategist for Daniel Ellsberg during the Pentagon Papers Trial. And when a coup in Greece imprisoned his friend, Andreas Papandreou, Sheinbaum took great personal risks to save his life. During the Los Angeles "Rodney King" riots, as President of the Police Commission, Sheinbaum sparred with Police Chief Daryl Gates, ultimately persuading him to resign. In a bold move to promote peace, Sheinbaum met with Yasser Arafat and persuaded him to denounce terrorism against Israel. At the request of President Clinton, Sheinbaum traveled to Damascus to set up a summit with Syria.
Stanley Sheinbaum's life story holds lessons for all who promote peace and understanding among the world's citizens.
He's a man you ought to know about.