Address at the World Trade Center of New Orleans

on the topic of

FIRST OFF, LET ME THANK YOU ALL FOR THE INVITATION TO VISIT NEW ORLEANS TODAY. ALTHOUGH I’M A NATIVE NEW YORKER AND HAVE SPENT MOST OF MY CAREER IN AFRICA, LATIN AMERICA, EUROPE AND WASHINGTON, NEW ORLEANS HOLDS A SPECIAL PLACE IN MY HEART.

IN FACT, WHEN IT WAS MY TURN TO HOST AN ANNUAL CONFERENCE FOR MY COUNTERPARTS FROM THE UK, AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND CANADA, I CHOSE TO HAVE THE MEETING IN NEW ORLEANS - TO THE IMMENSE AND CONTINUING DELIGHT OF MY COLLEAGUES.

WE EACH TRY TO OUTDO THE OTHER WITH THE SETTINGS FOR THESE MEETINGS AND IN THE PAST WE HAVE HELD MEETINGS IN LONDON, SYDNEY, BANFF, CANADA, AND QUEENSTOWN, NEW ZEALAND. AND NO MATTER WHAT VIRTUES YOU CAN EXTOL ABOUT EACH OF THOSE SPECTACULAR PLACES, I THINK YOU’LL AGREE WITH ME WHEN I SAY THAT NONE OF THEM HOLD A CANDLE TO THE SPIRIT AND ENERGY OF NEW ORLEANS.

NEEDLESS TO SAY, I DON’T THINK ANY OF MY COLLEAGUES SLEPT A WINK DURING THE ENTIRE CONFERENCE. YET TO THEIR IMMENSE CREDIT AND DUE IN NO SMALL PART, I’M SURE, TO THEIR YEARS OF RIGOROUS TRAINING ON THE DIPLOMATIC CIRCUIT, WE HELD A WONDERFUL SESSION OF MEETINGS HERE.

SO WHEN I WAS OFFERED THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME AND SPEAK WITH YOU TODAY TO COMMEMORATE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY, I JUMPED AT THE CHANCE TO RETURN TO YOUR WONDERFUL CITY.

FOR FUTURE REFERENCE, HOWEVER, I ASSURE YOU THAT I WOULD HAVE EQUALLY WELCOMED THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME AND COMMEMORATE MARDI GRAS WITH YOU ALL...

SOMEHOW, VISITING NEW ORLEANS DURING LENT IS LIKE GOING TO VENICE DURING A GONDOLIER STRIKE. IT’S STILL WONDERFUL, BUT IT’S JUST NOT THE SAME EXPERIENCE.

WE ARE HERE FOR INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY AND TO DISCUSS THE EXPANDING ROLE OF WOMEN IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. AND ALTHOUGH THIS IS A TOPIC THAT FOR ALL PRACTICAL PURPOSES I HAVE LIVED EVERY DAY DURING MY THIRTY-FIVE YEAR CAREER WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, I CAN’T PROFESS TO BE WHAT I WOULD CONSIDER AN ACADEMIC EXPERT ON THE TOPIC.

I DIDN’T COME HERE TODAY ARMED WITH A SCHOLARLY FEMINIST EXPOSITION. RATHER I’D LIKE TO TALK WITH YOU ABOUT SOME OF THE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITH WHICH I AND MY FEMALE COLLEAGUES HAVE BEEN PRESENTED OVER THE YEARS, AND THE GLOBAL CHANGES THAT HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS BEING AN UNPRECEDENTED TIME OF ADVANCEMENT FOR WOMEN ON THE WORLD STAGE.

WHEN I JOINED THE FOREIGN SERVICE IN 1966, I NEVER IMAGINED THAT I WOULD BECOME THE FIRST FEMALE AMBASSADOR TO SWAZILAND, NOR DID I IMAGINE THAT I WOULD BECOME ONLY THE SECOND WOMAN TO ACHIEVE THE RANK OF CAREER AMBASSADOR.

I NEVER DREAMT THAT I WOULD HAVE THE GREAT PRIVILEGE OF SERVING AS THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE FOR CONSULAR AFFAIRS. THAT’S A FANCY TITLE THAT MORE SIMPLY MEANS THAT I OVERSEE CONSULAR OPERATIONS, INCLUDING SERVICES PROVIDED TO US CITIZENS OVERSEAS AND IMMIGRANT AND NON-IMMIGRANT VISA ADJUDICATIONS, AT EVERY US DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POST ABROAD, AND I ALSO OVERSEE PASSPORT ISSUANCE HERE IN THE UNITED STATES.

AS I SAID, I DIDN’T JOIN THE FOREIGN SERVICE ALL THOSE YEARS AGO IN ANTICIPATION OF HAVING SUCH A FASCINATING AND REWARDING CAREER. NO, I BECAME A FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER BECAUSE THE JOB OFFERED ME SOMETHING THAT MET MY LOFTY GRADUATE STUDENT IDEALS - A SALARY.

OF COURSE, IT DIDN’T HURT THAT THE JOB WAS IN A FIELD THAT FASCINATED ME AND THAT OFFERED ME THE CHANCE TO PERFORM PUBLIC SERVICE. IN THOSE DAYS, GOVERNMENT SERVICE WAS A TRULY NOBLE CALLING.

THOSE WERE THE MORE IDEALISTIC DAYS WHEN PEACE CORPS WAS FORMED, BEFORE WE BECAME MIRED IN THE VIETNAM CONFLICT AND BEFORE COUNTLESS POLITICIANS TOOK UP RUNNING FOR OFFICE BY DECRYING WHAT THEY PERCEIVE TO BE THE INEFFICIENCY AND WASTEFULNESS OF INSIDE THE BELTWAY WASHINGTON.

ALSO, UNLIKE TODAY WITH THE EXPANSION OF MULTINATIONAL BUSINESSES AND THE ADVENT OF INTERNATIONAL NGOS, THERE WERE FEW PROFESSIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN, IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS.

AND, FEW AS THOSE OPPORTUNITIES WERE, THEY ALSO CAME WITH IMMENSE OBSTACLES TO SUCCESS FOR WOMEN. WHEN I JOINED THE FOREIGN SERVICE, FOR EXAMPLE, WOMEN WERE COMPELLED TO RESIGN THEIR JOBS WHEN THEY MARRIED - A PRACTICE THAT CONTINUED UNTIL 1972.

THIS REQUIREMENT WAS ONE THAT OFFERED NO WORK-AROUND. IT FORCED WOMEN TO CHOOSE ABSOLUTELY BETWEEN A PROFESSIONAL LIFE AND A FAMILY LIFE - AND MOST CHOSE A FAMILY. AS A RESULT, IN 1970, FEWER THAN FIVE PERCENT OF U.S. FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS WERE WOMEN.

FOR MY CONTEMPORARIES WHO WERE FORCED TO RESIGN WHEN THEY MARRIED, THE CHOICE WAS ESSENTIALLY MADE FOR THEM, BUT FOR OTHER WOMEN, THE ASSUMPTION THAT THEY WOULDN’T FIND A CAREER IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS - OR THAT THEY WERE ILL-SUITED TO GLOBE-TROTTING - WAS BASED ON A CONSERVATIVE SET OF SOCIETAL BELIEFS ABOUT A WOMAN’S EMERGING ROLE IN THE WORKING WORLD.

CONSIDER WHAT MARGARET THATCHER SAID IN AN OCTOBER 1969 INTERVIEW WITH THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH, "NO WOMAN IN MY TIME WILL BE PRIME MINISTER OR CHANCELLOR OR FOREIGN SECRETARY-NOT THE TOP JOBS. ANYWAY I WOULDN'T WANT TO BE PRIME MINISTER. YOU HAVE TO GIVE YOURSELF 100 PERCENT."

A MERE TEN YEARS LATER, OF COURSE, SHE WAS BRITAIN’S FIRST FEMALE PRIME MINISTER, AND FEW DOUBT THE FACT THAT SHE GAVE THE JOB 100 PERCENT FOR THE NEXT DECADE. WHILE I CERTAINLY CAN’T SPEAK TO WHAT LADY THATCHER WAS THINKING AS SHE SAID THOSE WORDS, I DO BELIEVE THAT IN CERTAIN INSTANCES, WOMEN HAD TO FIRST CONVINCE THEMSELVES OF TWO THINGS: THAT THEY COULD DO THE WORK AND THAT THEY WANTED TO DO THE WORK. AND THEN THEY HAD TO SET ABOUT CONVINCING EVERYONE ELSE.

NEEDLESS TO SAY, THERE WERE WOMEN IN THE MID-SIXTIES AND EARLY SEVENTIES WHO KNEW THEY WANTED TO DO THIS WORK NO MATTER WHAT THE OBSTACLES. I RECALL ARRIVING AT MY FOREIGN SERVICE ORIENTATION CLASS AND LOOKING AROUND THE ROOM AND SEEING VERY FEW WOMEN. AND THE ONES THAT I DID SEE COULD BE VERY SERIOUS ABOUT THEIR WORK.

ONE OF THE YOUNG WOMEN WAS SITTING IN CLASS WRITING IN ARABIC. EVEN TODAY, THAT SIGHT WOULD BE AN UNUSUAL ONE, BUT - IN 1966, I BEGAN TO WONDER WHAT EXACTLY I HAD GOTTEN MYSELF INTO!

ONE OF MY SENIOR DEPUTIES, WHO HAD GROWN UP IN A TINY TOWN IN THE TEXAS PANHANDLE, TELLS THE STORY THAT SHE WANTED TO HAVE A CAREER, AS MANY YOUNG WOMEN DID IN THE 1970’S. NOW WHEN SHE INFORMED HER FATHER OF THIS, HE ANNOUNCED THAT WHAT SHE SHOULD DO IS AIM TO BE A TELLER AT THE BANK BRANCH IN THE COUNTY SEAT. IT WAS HONEST AND SUITABLE WORK FOR A YOUNG WOMAN.

NEVERTHELESS, SHE TOOK THE FOREIGN SERVICE EXAM, BECAME A CONSULAR OFFICER AND IN THOSE INTERVENING TWENTY-FIVE YEARS HAS LEARNED RUSSIAN, JAPANESE, SPANISH AND FRENCH, WHILE TRAVELING THE GLOBE WITH HER HUSBAND, WHO IS ALSO A FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER, AND THEIR TWO CHILDREN. SHE HAS SERVED AS THE HIGHEST-RANKING CONSULAR OFFICER IN FOUR OF OUR LARGEST MISSIONS AND HAS SERVED AS A DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE. IT WAS SIMPLY A MATTER OF KNOWING WHAT SHE WANTED TO DO AND GOING AFTER HER DREAM, DESPITE THE DOUBTS AND DISSUASION OF THOSE CLOSEST TO HER.

BUT HER FATHER WASN’T THE ONLY ONE WHO NEEDED CONVINCING ABOUT HER SUITABILITY FOR THE WORK. AMONG THE THINGS THAT CONSULAR OFFICERS DO IS VISIT AMERICAN CITIZENS IMPRISONED ABROAD. ON HER FIRST TOUR IN LATIN AMERICA TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, SHE HAD TO GO AND VISIT AN AMERICAN IN JAIL AND SHE AND HER DRIVER SET OFF FOR THE PRISON.

WHEN SHE GOT TO THE PRISON, SHE WENT TO THE ENTRANCE AND KNOCKED ON THE DOOR, IN TIME A GUARD OPENED IT AND, ARMED WITH HER CONSULAR CREDENTIALS AND FLUENT SPANISH, SHE EXPLAINED HER BUSINESS. RATHER THAN LETTING HER IN, HOWEVER, HE INFORMED HER THAT ONLY THE CONSULAR OFFICER COULD VISIT PRISONERS. NO AMOUNT OF EXPLANATION BY HER WOULD DO. THE GUARD REPEATEDLY SAID ONLY CONSULAR OFFICERS WERE TO SEE PRISONERS AND SHE COULDN’T BE ADMITTED.

SENSING AN IRRESOLVABLE IMPASSE, SHE RETURNED TO THE CAR AND EXPLAINED TO THE DRIVER WITH FRUSTRATION WHAT HAD HAPPENED. THE DRIVER THEN WENT TO THE GATE AND SPOKE BRIEFLY WITH THE GUARD. THE DRIVER MOTIONED TO HER TO COME BACK TO THE PRISON GATE, WHERE SHE WAS PROMPTLY ADMITTED AND ALLOWED TO PERFORM HER VISIT. THE EXPLANATION? THE GUARD SIMPLY COULDN’T FATHOM THAT A WOMAN COULD BE A DIPLOMAT AND NEEDED TO HAVE IT EXPLAINED TO HIM BY MALE DRIVER.

TODAY, THOSE STORIES ARE FEWER AND FARTHER BETWEEN. NEARLY ONE IN THREE FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS IS FEMALE TODAY, AND WITH THE PASSAGE OF TIME SEEING A WOMAN WORKING IN A PROFESSIONAL CAPACITY OVERSEAS HAS BECOME MORE COMMON PLACE. NONETHELESS, WOMEN STILL ARE CONSIDERED TO BE SECOND CLASS CITIZENS IN MANY COUNTRIES.

THE EXPERIENCE OF ANOTHER JUNIOR OFFICER, ALSO A WOMAN PERFORMING A PRISON VISIT, EXEMPLIFIES THIS BEST. THIS EVENT TOOK PLACE IN A VERY STRICT ISLAMIC COUNTRY JUST A FEW WEEKS AGO. THE CONSULAR OFFICER HAD TO GO TO VISIT AN AMERICAN CITIZEN ACCUSED OF MURDER, AND AS IS THE CUSTOM IN THIS COUNTRY, SHE AND THE PRISONER WERE TO BE SERVED TEA WHILE THEY TALKED. THE TEA SERVICE ARRIVED AND, AS IS ALSO THE CUSTOM THERE, THE MAN WAS SERVED FIRST - AN EVENT THAT THE PRISONER DID NOT LET PASS LIGHTLY. HE LOOKED AT THE FEMALE OFFICER AND SAID, "THESE PEOPLE THINK I’M A MURDERER, YET I STILL GET SERVED FIRST. YOURS IS THE WORST JOB IN THE WORLD." WHILE I DISAGREE WITH HIS ASSESSMENT OF MY CHOSEN PROFESSION, HIS SOCIAL COMMENTARY SPEAKS VOLUMES.

WHEN YOU TAKE THE TWO STORIES TOGETHER, I BELIEVE THAT THE SECOND STORY SHOWS THAT WOMEN ARE MAKING PROGRESS. DESPITE WHAT THE LOCALS THINK OF WOMEN AND THEIR STATION IN LIFE, THAT AMERICAN DIPLOMAT WAS PERMITTED TO DO HER JOB AND SHE IS DOING IT VERY WELL.

IN ADDITION, BY VIRTUE OF THE COMBINATION OF HER GENDER AND HER DIPLOMATIC STATUS, SHE ALSO HAS ACCESS TO WOMEN IN THAT SOCIETY WHERE MALE FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS DO NOT. A DISTINCT ADVANTAGE WHEN YOU ARE REPORTING ON WOMEN’S ISSUES OR DEALING WITH THE BATTERED AMERICAN CITIZEN WIFE OF A LOCAL NATIONAL.

BEYOND HAVING EXPANDED ACCESS TO CERTAIN SEGMENTS OF SOCIETY, HOWEVER, WOMEN DIPLOMATS HAVE ANOTHER IMPORTANT EFFECT THROUGH THEIR WORK - THAT OF ROLE MODEL. ONCE OTHER CULTURES - AND OFTEN MOST IMPORTANTLY THE WOMEN OF THOSE CULTURES - SEE THAT A WOMEN HAS BEEN GIVEN A POSITION OF RESPONSIBILITY BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT, THEY BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THAT WOMEN CAN DO WHATEVER JOB THEY ARE GIVEN ONCE THE PITCH OF THE PLAYING FIELD BEGINS TO APPROACH LEVEL.

WHEN I WAS NAMED AMBASSADOR TO SWAZILAND, IT WAS A FIRST FOR THE SWAZIS. NO COUNTRY HAD EVER NOMINATED A WOMAN TO SUCH A POST IN THAT COUNTRY BEFORE. BECAUSE SWAZILAND WAS HIGHLY PATRIARCHAL, I WAS WARNED BEFORE I GOT THERE THAT IT MIGHT BE DIFFICULT FOR ME TO FIND ACCEPTANCE THERE.

DURING MY TENURE THERE, HOWEVER, I EXPERIENCED NO PROBLEMS WHATSOEVER. YEARS LATER, I RAN INTO ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES AND I MENTIONED THE PREDICTION TO HIM, AS WELL AS MY BELIEF THAT IT HAD NOT APPLIED TO ME. HE SHRUGGED AND TOLD ME THAT MY APPOINTMENT HAD CAUSED SOME INITIAL CONSTERNATION, BUT THAT THE SWAZIS KNEW THAT THEY COULD NOT AFFORD TO OFFEND THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT OR THE AMERICAN AMBASSADOR.

THE SWAZI SOLUTION? THEY SIMPLY DEEMED ME AN HONORARY MAN AND ANY PROBLEMS CONSEQUENT TO MY GENDER IMMEDIATELY DISAPPEARED.

SO MUCH FOR THE HARD WORK I PUT IN THERE AND ANY ATTENDANT STRIDES FOR EQUALITY THAT MY APPOINTMENT THERE MADE, I THOUGHT.

I WAS GRATIFIED, HOWEVER, TO LEARN LATER THAT MY APPOINTMENT THERE HAD, IN FACT, MADE AN IMPACT. A SWAZI WOMAN TOLD ME THAT MY APPOINTMENT HAD DEMONSTRATED TO HER AND HER PEERS JUST WHAT WAS POSSIBLE FOR WOMEN IN THE WORLD OUTSIDE SWAZILAND.

MY TIME THERE HAD GIVEN SWAZI WOMEN - IF NOT THEIR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS - A GLIMPSE OF THE HEIGHTS TO WHICH THEY - OR MORE LIKELY THEIR DAUGHTERS - MIGHT BE ABLE TO REACH.

IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT DIPLOMACY IS, AFTER ALL, IN LARGE PART A SOCIAL, AS WELL AS A POLITICAL, SCIENCE.

SINCE THE U.S. LEADS THE WORLD IN CULTURAL EXPORTS, WE MUST ALSO ENDEAVOR TO EXPORT OUR HIGHEST SOCIAL VALUES AND OUR EXPECTATIONS OF EQUALITY FOR ALL.

IF WE EXPECT AND DEMONSTRATE THAT WOMEN CAN AND WILL PRODUCE EQUALLY IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS ARENA, THEN EVENTUALLY OTHER NATIONS WILL CATCH ON. BECAUSE BEYOND THE PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS THAT WOMEN MAKE, THEY ALSO BECOME SYMBOLS FOR LITTLE GIRLS (AND THEIR PARENTS) ALL OVER THE WORLD ABOUT WHAT IS POSSIBLE.

AS I STATED PREVIOUSLY, HOWEVER, ONLY 1 IN 3 FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS IS A WOMAN AT THE PRESENT TIME. WHILE A SHARP INCREASE IN NUMBERS FROM WHEN I CAME INTO THE SERVICE, IT IS STILL NOT REFLECTIVE OF AMERICAN SOCIETY AS A WHOLE. THERE ARE SEVERAL REASONS FOR THIS, FEW OF THEM HAVING TO DO WITH OUR ABILITY TO PERFORM THE WORK, I CAN ASSURE YOU.

TODAY, MANY OF OUR YOUNG OFFICERS ARE STRUGGLING WITH THE SAME CHALLENGES FACING MANY YOUNG FAMILIES - BALANCING THE DEMANDS OF A TWO-CAREER FAMILY. GONE ARE THE DAYS WHEN A SINGLE GOVERNMENT SALARY WOULD AFFORD A FAMILY A COMFORTABLE MIDDLE-CLASS LIFESTYLE, AS ARE THE DAYS WHEN ONE SPOUSE, USUALLY THE WIFE, WOULD BE SATISFIED TO STAY AT HOME.

WHEN YOU THROW THE CHALLENGES OF MOVING AROUND THE WORLD EVERY FEW YEARS, FEW SPOUSES OF FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS CAN BUILD A REWARDING CAREER - EITHER FINANCIALLY OR OTHERWISE.

DUE TO THE SMALL SIZE OF THE SERVICE, AND NEPOTISM CONCERNS, IT CAN BE VERY CHALLENGING FOR TANDEM FOREIGN SERVICE COUPLES TO MAKE A GO OF DUAL CAREERS, AS WELL.

AND SETTING ASIDE THE FOREIGN SERVICE COMPLETELY, THE DEMANDS OF OVERSEAS TRAVEL, ATTENDING CONFERENCES AND LONG HOURS MAKE FOREIGN POLICY CAREERS IN GENERAL CHALLENGING - ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE WOMEN WITH FAMILIES.

THE EXISTENCE OF THESE CHALLENGES HIGHLIGHTS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FACT THAT WOMEN HAVE NOW SERVED AS SECRETARY OF STATE, U.S. TRADE REPRESENTATIVE, COMMISSIONER OF THE INS AND AS NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR, AS WELL AS IN HIGH-RANKING POSTS IN NGOS, AT THE U.N. AND ELSEWHERE.

THE VERY PUBLIC SUCCESSES OF THESE WOMEN MARK THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE THOUSANDS OF WOMEN WHO LABOR AT LOWER LEVELS IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS.

ALTHOUGH TRADITIONALLY FIELD DOMINATED BY MEN, INTERNATIONAL CAREERS HAVE BEEN ATTRACTING WOMEN OVER THE PAST FEW DECADES, AND DUE TO THEIR FINE QUALIFICATIONS AND DEDICATION, SOME OF THESE WOMEN ARE NOW ENTERING THE TOP LEVELS OF THEIR FIELDS.

THE CURRENT CONVERGENCE OF WOMEN IN HIGH-PROFILE FOREIGN AFFAIRS JOBS HOWEVER, IS NOT SOLELY A RESULT OF THEIR WORKING HARD AND MAKING IT UP THROUGH THE TRADITIONAL RANKS. IN MANY WAYS, THEIR SUCCESSES HAVE ALSO BEEN HELPED BY A MAJOR SHIFT IN GLOBAL POLITICS.

IT IS A VAST UNDERSTATEMENT TO SAY THAT WORLD HAS CHANGED IN THE LAST THIRTY-FIVE YEARS. AND IN MORE WAYS THAN ALLOWING WOMEN GREATER OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WORK PLACE.

FOR MOST OF THE LATTER HALF OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, ALL INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS WERE DOMINATED AND DEFINED BY THE COLD WAR STANDARD. OUR FOREIGN POLICY WAS INFUSED WITH THE IDEAS OF CONTAINMENT AND MUTUALLY ASSURED DESTRUCTION, AND WAS INEXTRICABLY LINKED TO DEFENSE ISSUES.

THESE WERE THE HOT TOPICS, AND THE INDIVIDUALS BELIEVED TO HAVE THE SKILLS NECESSARY TO ADVANCE OUR GOALS WERE INVARIABLY MALE. THE CLUBBY, OLD-BOYS NETWORK LOVED THE BRINKSMANSHIP, THE ONE-UPS-MANSHIP AND THE SHARPLY DEFINED TRADECRAFT THAT WERE THE HALLMARKS OF THE COLD WAR WORLD. AND SINCE AT THAT TIME THE MID LEVEL MILITARY LEADERSHIP POSITIONS WERE ESSENTIALLY CLOSED TO WOMEN, IT WAS THAT MUCH MORE DIFFICULT FOR THEM TO GAIN THE PRACTICAL EXPERTISE NECESSARY TO COMPETE WITH THEIR MALE COLLEAGUES.

AT THE SAME TIME, OTHER INTERNATIONAL ISSUES SUCH AS MIGRATION, HUMAN RIGHTS, DISASTER RELIEF AND THE ENVIRONMENT WERE DEEMED SECONDARY IN OUR POLICY PRIORITIES AND WERE NOT PERCEIVED AS PART OF OUR CORE NATIONAL SECURITY INTERESTS.

THE LACK OF INTENSE COMPETITIVE INTEREST BY THE COLD WARRIORS IN THESE "SOFT" ISSUES LEFT THE DOORS OPEN FOR WOMEN TO SPECIALIZE IN THESE FIELDS. A CONCEPT THAT IS BORNE OUT BY A RECENT RESEARCH REPORT DONE BY THE WOMEN’S FOREIGN POLICY GROUP ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS PROFESSIONS.

NOW, OF COURSE, WITH THE DEMISE OF THE COLD WAR, THE CORE OF OUR WORLD VIEW HAS CHANGED. QUITE LITERALLY, THE CONTENT, STYLE AND PRIORITY ISSUES OF OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS HAVE SHIFTED. DIPLOMACY ITSELF HAS CHANGED ALONG WITH THE BURNING ISSUES IN FOREIGN POLICY.

ON THE POST-COLD WAR WORLD STAGE, FORMER SECOND-TIER ISSUES SUCH AS POPULATION AND REFUGEE MIGRATION, HEALTH AND EDUCATION ARE TAKING LEADING ROLES. TODAY’S PROMINENT ISSUES ARE MUCH MORE DRIVEN BY ETHNIC AND POLITICAL CONFLICT AND HUMANITARIAN CONCERNS THAN UNIDIMENSIONAL DOCTRINE.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE CIVIL STRIFE AND AIDS CRISIS THAT ARE RAMPANT IN AFRICA, THE BALKANS CONFLICT, THE UNREST IN INDONESIA OR IN CHECHNYA, IT IS OBVIOUS THAT THE COLD WARRIOR MENTALITY AND SKILL SET MUST BE REDEFINED TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES.

IT IS CLEAR, THAT OUR WORLD VIEW CAN NO LONGER BE INFORMED SOLELY BY SYMBOLISM AND IDEOLOGY. OUR NATIONAL SECURITY CONCERNS NOW FOCUS ON ISSUES AS WIDE-RANGING AND IMMEDIATE AS HUNGER, HEALTH, EDUCATION AND MIGRATION.

TO AN ISSUE, THESE TOPICS WERE ON A BACK BURNER UNTIL THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION.

FOR THE MOST PART, THESE HOT ISSUES EMERGING ON THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE ALSO HAVE A STRONG PRESENCE IN DOMESTIC POLICY. CERTAINLY THE ISSUES OF HEALTH, EDUCATION AND HUNGER ARE ONES TO WHICH THE UNITED STATES HAS COMMITTED IMMENSE AMOUNTS OF TIME AND MONEY.

AS THE BURNING ISSUES OF DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN POLICIES START TO HARMONIZE, THERE WILL BE MANY MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN TO SPRINGBOARD INTO FOREIGN AFFAIRS JOBS. AS WELL AS OPENING UP MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO THOSE WOMEN WHO HAVE BEEN HONING THEIR SKILLS ON THESE FORMERLY UNFASHIONABLE FOREIGN AFFAIRS TOPICS FOR YEARS.

THE END OF THE COLD WAR HAS ALSO MEANT THE END OF THE DUAL SUPERPOWER SYSTEM, WHICH MEANS THAT WE ALSO HAVE TO CHANGE THE WAY THAT WE UNDERTAKE THE PRACTICE OF DIPLOMACY.

DON’T GET ME WRONG, THOUGH. I’M NOT ADVOCATING THAT OUR APPROACH TO FOREIGN POLICY SHOULD OR WILL BECOME MORE PASSIVE. THERE WILL STILL BE PLENTY OF ROOM AND OPPORTUNITY TO BE TOUGH.

THE WOMEN IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS TODAY ARE FULLY CAPABLE OF STANDING FIRM OR AGGRESSIVELY NEGOTIATING A POSITION. JUST LAST MONTH AT A WORKSHOP ON HUMAN RIGHTS IN BEIJING, UN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER MARY ROBINSON TOOK A TOUGH STAND ON CHINA, URGING THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT TO ABOLISH THE PRACTICE OF RE-EDUCATION THROUGH LABOR.

THIS WAS THE FIRST WORKSHOP HELD UNDER THE UN PACT ON ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RIGHTS, WHICH CHINA JUST RATIFIED. COMMISSIONER ROBINSON, WHO HAD HELPED TO KEEP THE PRESSURE ON CHINA TO RATIFY THIS PACT FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS, WAS NOT SATISFIED BY CHINA’S RATIFICATION, AND SHE CONTINUES TO PUSH THE CHINESE ON TOUGH HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES. SHE IS AN EXCELLENT EXAMPLE OF THE FINE MIX OF SUBTLETY AND TOUGHNESS THAT WOMEN CAN BRING TO INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS.

ALL OF THESE TRENDS AND DEVELOPMENTS, AUGER WELL FOR A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR WOMEN IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS ARENA. WE HAVE BEEN GATHERING THE EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE FOR YEARS ON THE EMERGING HOT TOPICS ON THE WORLD STAGE, WE HAVE THE SKILLS NECESSARY TO TAKE DIPLOMACY INTO THE 21ST CENTURY AND WE HAVE PROVEN THAT WOMEN CAN EXCEL AT ALL LEVELS OF FOREIGN POLICY FORMULATION AND EXECUTION.

IT IS A VERY BRIGHT TIME FOR WOMEN IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS. EVEN IN THE STRICTEST OF MUSLIM SOCIETIES, AMERICAN WOMEN ARE PERMITTED THE ACCEPTANCE TO PERFORM WORK AND PROVIDE SERVICES.

WHILE I WON’T ARGUE THAT WE HAVE ACHIEVED TRULY EQUAL FOOTING IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS - IF WE HAD OUR DIPLOMATIC CORPS WOULD BE A LOT CLOSER TO THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE UNITED STATES – THE WOMEN IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS TODAY HAVE ESTABLISHED A STRONG BASE UPON WHICH FUTURE GENERATIONS CAN BUILD.

AND IN MY OPINION, IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WOMEN CONTINUE TO SEEK OPPORTUNITIES IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS WORLD. NOT SOLELY BECAUSE WE’RE GOOD AT THE WORK AND CAN BE VERY SUCCESSFUL, BUT ALSO FOR THE MULTIPLIER EFFECT THAT WE HAVE WHEN WE SHOW THE WORLD THAT WOMEN NOT ONLY CAN REPRESENT THE UNITED STATES, BUT THAT WE CAN DO IT EFFECTIVELY.