The Foreign Service Journal, April 2021

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | APRIL 2021 19 Ambassador Dan’s Rap Video Goes Viral “ T ime for introductions are at hand. Hi, my name is Dan. I’m from Nebraska. I’m not a big city boy. Then three years ago, I moved to Hanoi.” So begins a rap song by career FSO Ambassador to VietnamDaniel Kriten- brink released on Feb. 8. The ambassador recorded the music video to send best wishes for the Lunar New Year—or as it is known in Vietnam, Tet—the most impor- tant celebration of the year. Produced by a Ho Chi Minh City media company, Vietcetera, the video starts with Kritenbrink expressing interest in competing in “Rap Viet,” a Vietnamese TV talent show. He works with Vietnam- ese rapper Wowy to create a song and rap. He raps about Tet traditions such as buying cherry blossoms and cleaning the house, concluding with some lines about improving the U.S.-Vietnam relationship: “Frommy shores to your shores, our friendship endures. U.S. and Vietnam, from now to forever, we’re trusted part- ners prospering together.” First shared on Embassy Hanoi’s Facebook page, the video went viral. By late February it had been viewed more than 60,000 times on Facebook, generating thousands of comments and re-shares. Some of the comments on YouTube (where it was also shared) below remind us that it’s nice to see something positive and fun for a change, although no one recom- mendedAmbassador Dan give up his day job. • Who cares if it’s kinda cringey. He clearly loves Vietnam and is just trying to have some fun. Seems like a genuinely nice guy and a fantastic ambassador. • This is the most ... BEAUTIFUL THING I’VE EVER SEEN. • Breaking down barriers through respect and appreciation ... I love it! • No ... no. Nope, nooo, No. … • Okay wait I love this. Media in Vietnam, the U.S. and else- where picked up the rap story, and the video has been shown on NBC News and CNN. Stories have run on PRI’s The World , in The Washington Post and elsewhere. Congressional Report Highlights Diversity Issues T he workforce at U.S. foreign policy agencies “is less racially and ethni- cally diverse than the U.S. population as a whole,” especially at senior pay grades, according to a Jan. 21 report by the Con- gressional Research Service. The 41-page report, “Faces and Voices of the United States Abroad: Diversity at U.S. Foreign Affairs Agencies,” finds that the Civil Service workforce at State and USAID have more racial and minor- ity employees proportionately than the American workforce as a whole; but the Foreign Service at these agencies has fewer racial and ethnic minorities, as well as women, compared to the general workforce. Moreover, the portion of women and racial and ethnic minorities declines at the higher levels. Among the foreign affairs agencies, the U.S. Agency for Global Media is the most racially and ethnically diverse, CRS found. Vaccines Slow in Getting Out to Posts I n late 2020 the Foreign Service com- munity expected that vaccines would be distributed quickly to overseas posts. In December, however, the State Depart- ment received only about 5 percent of its requested allocation. And as of mid-Feb- ruary, the agency had received only 23 percent of the 315,000 doses it requested to vaccinate its entire workforce, includ- ing family members, NBC News reported. A cable from the U.S. ambassador to Kosovo was leaked and then cited on Feb. 15 by NBC News. It gave “a snapshot into the mounting mental health crisis faced by U.S. diplomats” waiting to receive the vaccine after 11 months of sheltering during the pandemic in one of Europe’s poorest countries. U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink performs in a rap song recorded to celebrate Vietnam’s Lunar New Year.