Can Sisyphus Win? Reforming Diplomacy for New Challenges.

• Author: Perry, June Carter

Title: Can Sisyphus Win? Reforming Diplomacy for New Challenges

Author: June Carter Perry

Text:

Moving the bureaucracy is akin to Sisyphus: forever pushing the rock up the hill only to have it roll back. However, with a renewed interest in making diplomacy and the State Department more effective and equitable, the New Year brings a plethora of reports and recommendations to align the oldest and premier United States agency into an institution prepared to meet contemporary challenges.

Four of the most prominent reports comes from the American Academy of Diplomacy, the Association of Black American Ambassadors (ABAA), the Belfer Center at Harvard, and the Council on Foreign Relations. The brain trusts of these groups are lifelong diplomats, foreign affairs think tanks, State Department affinity groups, and universities. All put forward overlapping themes: high level responsibility to improve diversity, extensive training and education, and commitment to strengthen State's relationship with Congress to significantly increase resources.

High Level Support for Diversity throughout the Department

Although the reports recognize the Department's existing Diversity and Inclusion initiative, they strongly emphasize that the agency requires the Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Assistant Secretaries of State be visible as invested in expanding the roles and senior levels of ethnic groups and women throughout the organization. The statistics are telling. In the past twenty years, the percentages of African American and Hispanic officers have reached a new low: 5 percent for Black officers and just over 3.6 percent for Hispanics (Belfer report). All reports urge a rigorous enhancement of and commitment to having a Foreign and Civil Service that looks like America. (Belfer, ABAA).

The recruitment strategies of the Pickering, Rangel, and Payne Fellowship programs merit praise. However, to be truly effective, these efforts need to be increased a minimum of 50 percent (American Academy of Diplomacy), put emphasis on retention, and secure sufficient resources from Congress. The continued downward trajectory of people of color in ambassadorial positions is disheartening: five African American ambassadors in 2020, down from 46 in 2008-16 (Obama Administration) and 44 in 2002-2008 (George W. Bush Administration).

In the Trump Administration, there were only four African American ambassadors appointed of the 189 chiefs of mission worldwide (Belfer). The...