Kidnappings, particularly those of high-ranking political officials, were not uncommon in 1970s Uruguay given the prominence of an urban guerilla…
Removing Corpses from the U.S. Embassy: Behind the Scenes of Operation Restore Hope in Somalia
After the fall of Somalia’s dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, a civil war broke out between warlords. In the…
Human Moments With George and Barbara Bush on the Eve of the 1991 Gulf War
Joseph C. Wilson IV oversaw the closing of the U.S. Embassy in Iraq in 1991, just before U.S. and allied…
Latino American Ambassadors
Latino Americans have some of the lowest rates of participation in the federal workforce making it incredibly difficult for them…
Tracking the Politics of Burma (Myanmar) After the Flawed 1990 Elections
While democratic elections were held in Burma (Myanmar) by the military-led government in 1990, the elected parliament was never allowed…
The State Department’s Air Wing and Counternarcotics Programs in South America
In the early 1990s, at the height of the “War on Drugs,” David Lyon took a break from consular work…
James Baldwin: The Expatriate Who Fought for His Country
James Baldwin is counted among the greatest and most influential of American authors. He died in 1987 at the age…
Witness to the Start of Sri Lanka’s Brutal Civil War
The Sri Lankan Civil War was one of the bloodiest conflicts in recent times, claiming the lives of nearly 100,000…
General’s Coup Attempt Prompts Evacuation from Guinea-Bissau
At the crack of dawn on June 7, 1998, Ambassador Peggy Blackford woke to sounds of gunfire outside and someone…
Keeping Kissinger Current at the Outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War
Ted Feifer wrote daily briefs for Secretary of State Henry Kissinger at the outbreak of Lebanon’s civil war in 1975. …