“Winning hearts and minds” is at the very core of diplomacy. Sometimes that takes place in an embassy or a…
The Foreign Service at War (Part 1): A Diplomat on the Frontline in Vietnam
For U.S. Foreign Service Officers during the Vietnam War, an assignment to South Vietnam was unlike any other. For some,…
A Miracle Worker in Vietnam—Saving a Young Boy’s Life
Being a U.S. soldier and fighting for your country overseas is an incredible sacrifice. The extended time away from family,…
“Till Death Do Us Part”—Relationships for Women in the Foreign Service
Women have come a long way in fighting for equality within the workforce. This has inevitably shaped relationships for women…
Drowning in a Strawberry Ice Cream Soda: Life as a Diplomat in the Philippines
World powers, including the United States, have long considered the Philippines to be of strategic importance. The entire landmass of…
The Struggle for Equal Rights: LGBTQ Advocacy in the Foreign Service
While working at the U.S. embassy in Seychelles in 1985, David Buss fell in love with a Peace Corps volunteer,…
Fighting LGBT Discrimination, and Fighting to Stay in the Foreign Service
Up until the late 1990s, Foreign Service careers were denied to openly gay men under the pretense of security concerns.…
Duty and Danger: An American Diplomat’s Service in Iraq on the Eve of 1991 Gulf War
American diplomat Stephen Thibeault watched as an airplane departed Iraq in 1990, carrying Rev. Jesse Jackson and American hostages liberated…
Sheila Platt: A Diplomatic Life Bridging Both Sides of China’s Divide
Few Americans have met personally with the leadership of both Mao Zedong’s China and Chiang Kai-shek’s Taiwan. Sheila Platt, and…
From the 1985 Achille Lauro Hijacking to the 2014 Ebola Crisis: Steven Browning’s Foreign Service Career
Steven Browning was a third-tour Foreign Service Officer in Alexandria, Egypt when he found himself in the midst of the…