NEW YORK — More than 300 executives, foundation heads and thought leaders gathered at a black-tie gala Thursday for an evening of reflection on one of the most urgent questions of our time: why ordinary Americans no longer trust people like them.
The $40,000-a-plate event, held in a museum that was closed to the public for the night "for security reasons," featured a nine-course dinner, a string quartet, and a keynote address titled "Bridging the Divide: Why Won't They Listen to Us?"
"We've done everything for these people," said one hedge fund founder, between bites of a quail egg served on a slightly larger quail egg. "We've told them what to eat, what to drive, what to say and how to feel about it. And still nothing. It's baffling."
A breakout session called "Reconnecting With Real Americans" gave attendees the chance to meet an actual real American, a plumber flown in for the evening, who was seated at a separate card table next to the kitchen door. Several guests called the encounter "deeply moving" and asked whether he could take a quick look at a sink in the coat check.
Organizers said the night's findings will be compiled into a 600-page report on restoring public trust, to be shared exclusively with attendees. Its preliminary conclusion is that the problem is "messaging."
At press time, the gala had raised $12 million for a national campaign to rebuild trust, which will consist of a single 30-second ad of the attendees telling Americans to trust them.