The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2020

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JULY-AUGUST 2020 17 ity in the United States. U.S. embassies rarely weigh in on U.S. domestic affairs. “We are deeply troubled by the death of Mr. George Floyd in Minneapolis. The U.S. Department of Justice is conducting a full criminal investigation as a top pri- ority. Law enforcement officials must be held accountable in every country,” U.S. Embassy Nairobi tweeted on May 29. U.S. Mission Uganda and U.S. Ambas- sador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mike Hammer made similar statements. On June 2, U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Kyle McCarter tweeted: “I hear you. Voices of the American people, mine included, reflect their horror & anger at the repugnant acts of these officers. Justice will prevail.” The U.S. embassy in Tanzania on May 29 tweeted a joint Justice Department and FBI statement announcing a crim i- nal investigation into Floyd’s death. Officials placed a Black Lives Matter banner on the exterior of the U.S. embassy in Seoul on June 13 and tweeted: “Our #BlackLivesMatter banner shows our sup- port for the fight against racial injustice and police brutality as we strive to be a more inclusive & just society.” But on June 15, the embassy removed the banner after President Trump and Secretary Pompeo expressed displeasure about it, Reuters reported. Association of Black American Ambassadors on George Floyd T he Association of Black American Ambassadors released a statement on June 9 on the deaths of George Floyd and other Black Americans at the hands of the police. Nearly 60 ambassadors signed the statement. Excerpts follow: “We spent our careers looking beyond America’s borders, but these shocking events call us to look inward and join with others in opposing discrimination and oppression in all its forms. We join our fellow citizens, brothers and sisters in demanding an end to inhumane police practices; we call for accountability, fair- ness, transparency, and transformation in our national, state and local institutions, including legal, judicial and law enforce- ment systems, to prevent future violence of this kind. … “As the organization representing the country’s most seasoned Black American diplomats, we believe strongly that equal rights and complete pursuit of justice is but the first step needed to rebuild our own citizens’ confidence in our demo- cratic system and values. But, it is also needed to help restore our country’s global human rights authority. We will work with like-minded organizations to demand the development and implementation of policies that put an end to injustice, repres- sion, and violence in our great democracy. We all want an equitable society where each of us has the right to breathe.” NatSec Professionals Respond to Use of Military on U.S. Streets O n June 5, a statement addressed to U.S. national, state and local leaders—signed by more than 500 (and rising) former high-level U.S. diplomats and military officials—decried the use of the U.S. military to put down peace- ful protests at home. Excerpts from the I n this new podcast, Foreign Service Eco- nomic Officer Jeremy Beer interviews some of America’s most influential diplomats, capturing the sacrifice, professionalism, humor, heroism, wisdom and triumph of modern-day American diplomacy. Through personal anecdotes, guests explain what they were trying to achieve with a given foreign policy, how they tried to accomplish those objectives, and where things went right (or wrong). Beer, an FSO since 2003, is cur- rently on a sabbatical fellowship at the Una Chapman Cox Foundation, a nonprofit working to support the effectiveness and professional- ism of the U.S. Foreign Service. He is writing a book, Modern Ameri- can Diplomacy: A Field Guide to Success in the Foreign Service , featur- ing interviews with top diplomats. The podcast con- versations to date include retired ambassadors John Negroponte, Bill Burns, Bob Blake, Maura Harty and a host of similarly accomplished U.S. diplomats. Seven episodes have been released, the first on Dec. 5, 2019. In the Feb. 20 podcast, Ambas- sador Thomas Pickering shares tips on managing an embassy, serving in hardship posts, developing foreign contacts and navigating a life and career in the U.S. Foreign Service. Visit bit.ly/diplomacy-podcast. Podcast of the Month: Modern American Diplomacy