The Foreign Service Journal, May 2012

O nMarch 11, Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies celebrat- ed its 20th anniversary by hosting a brunch. The event featured GLIFAA’s founders, David Buss and David Larson, who established the organization over a similarbrunch inMarch1992. At that time, gay and lesbian Foreign Service officers couldbe subject to criminal investigations, as the potential for blackmail of homo- sexuals was considered a security threat to the United States. Buss and Larson shared with the crowd, many of whom were founding members, their own experiences of endur- ing investigations, but they alsohadmuch to report in the way of themany advances that have been made since then. The event was an opportunity to cele- brate thegroup’s successesover thepast two decades, butGLIFAAPresident T.J. Lunardi and Ken Kero-Mentz, GLIFAA’s outreach director and a member of AFSA’s Governing Board, noted that there is still important work to be done. “We remember the incredible progress thatwehavemade in these past two decades. We remember that there are still challenges, and that we are not yet truly equal,” reflectedLunardi. “And aswe con- tinue the struggle,we remember the most important lesson GLIFAA’s history offers: a small, determined group of peo- plewilling to sacrifice can truly change the world.” AFSAhas been a supporter of GLIFAA since its inception. The association pro- vided legal support toAFSAmemberswho wereunder StateDepartment investigation as a result of their sexual orientation and helped the groupconnectwithother advo- catesworking toenddiscriminationagainst gays and lesbians. AFSAcontinues toadvo- cate for equal benefits and equal opportu- nities in the workplace for gay and lesbian FS employees and fully supportsGLIFAA’s work to end discrimination. “I deeply admire the courage of GLIFAA’s founders as they stepped forward in those early days to challenge the depart- ment’s discriminatory policies, insensitiv- ityandunfair treatment,” says IanHouston, AFSA’s executivedirector. “The fact is some of our gayand lesbianemployees areamong America’smost talentedandpatrioticpub- lic servants. We are proud of our associ- ationwithGLIFAA and privileged to rep- resent and serve its members.” MA Y 2 0 1 2 / F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L 49 A F S A N E W S S tevenAlanHonley, editor-in-chief of the ForeignService Journal since 2001, traveled to Lubbock on March 21 to deliver this year’sWilliamS.Morris III Lecture atTexasTechUniversity’s School of Mass Communications. To mark the ninth anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom, which came just two days before his appearance,Honleyaddressedthe topic, “Was theWar inIraqWorth Fighting?” After agracious introductionby retiredAmbassadorTiborNagy, TTU’s vice provost of international affairs, Honley used his pre- sentation to extol the courage, dedication and expertise of Foreign Service personnel in Iraq. He reminded the audience that analysts in State’s Bureau of Intelligence andResearch, virtually alone in the U.S. government, hadwarnedwell before thewar that Bushadmin- istrationclaims about SaddamHussein’s alleged ties to terrorismand weapons of mass destruction had little basis in reality. He also cited State’s 2002 “Future of Iraq Project,” which drew onawiderangeofexpertisetopredictmostoftheproblemstheUnited States would encounter after ousting Saddam. Still,Honleyemphasized, as soonas the regime fell, ForeignService members immediately volunteered to serve alongsidemilitary per- sonnel under dangerous, difficult conditions. Many suffered post- traumatic stress disorder or other serious injuries during their ser- vice there. He concluded his remarks by observing that even though U.S. troops are nowgone fromIraq, Embassy Baghdad is still the largest American diplomatic mission anywhere in the world—a distinc- tion it is likely to retain for years as it works to support a sovereign, stableandself-reliantIraqthatoffersavoiceofmoderationanddemoc- racy in the Middle East. Honley then answered numerous questions from an audience made up of faculty, staff and students from the university’s College ofMassCommunications andDepartment of International Affairs, local journalists andmembers of the Lubbock community, includ- ing two city council members and a judge. Laterthatafternoon,HonleyservedonapanelmoderatedbyAmb. Nagy on “The Arab Spring: One Year Later.” That event was part oftheSigmaDeltaPiHonorSociety’sFourthAnnualForumonPeace and Security. As at the luncheon, Honley fielded several questions from TTU students and other audience members following his remarks. FSJ Editor Speaks at Texas Tech University BY DONNA AYERST, AFSA NEWS EDITOR KEN KERO-MENTZ GLIFAA Celebrates 20th Anniversary BY CLINT LOHSE, AFSA LEGISLATIVE ASSISTANT (Left to right) GLIFAA members Bryan W. Dalton, president from1998 to 2000; David Larson; David Buss, first president, 1992 to 1994; and Jene Thomas celebrate GLIFAA’s 20th anniversary brunch onMarch 11. All four attended the group’s founding brunch on March 8, 1992.