List of Illustrations
Foreword by Allen E. Goodman
Preface by John Bersia
Acknowledgments
Introduction: America’s Approach Is Not the Planet’s Only Game
1. What a Family!
2. My Name Is Harriet
3. Do You Know How to Type?
4. Young, Black, Female, and . . . from the White House
5. Harriet, How Is Your Greek?
6. The Desk Officer Who Was Never in Her Office
7. Well, It’s the Truth!
8. This Was Our “Aha” Moment
9. Off to Dakar
10. I Was Ready to Retire . . . I Thought
Epilogue: Coming Full Circle, Cuba Face-to-Face
Index
Harriet Lee Elam-Thomas is a diplomat and professor who held numerous posts abroad over the course of her forty-two-year career, including positions in Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, France, Belgium, Mali, Senegal, and the Ivory Coast. She retired in 2005 from the U.S. State Department as a senior foreign-service officer with the rank of career minister and currently directs the University of Central Florida Diplomacy Program. Jim Robison is a retired newspaper reporter, columnist, and editor and is the author of eleven books on Central Florida history, lore, and legends.
"An informative, behind-the-scenes look at one black woman's rise
through the ranks of the Foreign Service when few others like her
were serving as diplomats."—Kirkus
"If you like stories about women overcoming obstacles—and why
wouldn’t you?—you’ll appreciate Diversifying Diplomacy: My Journey
from Roxbury to Dakar."—Stephanie Topacio Long, Bustle
“Diversifying Diplomacy, the memoir of Harriet Elam-Thomas, is more
than just a personal history, more than just a ‘her-story.’ It is
the timely narrative of an African American woman weaned in black
Boston on family pride and ambition, liberated through education,
inspired by civil rights battles, and mentored to the top by fellow
travelers and battle-scarred elders. Hers is a great American
story. It is fact, not fiction. It’s real.”—Milton Coleman, retired
senior editor of the Washington Post
“Harriet Lee Elam-Thomas’s insights and inside stories
from the State Department and her postings in Europe, the Middle
East, and Africa make it clear that foreign relations is a
tough, sensitive, and truly person-to-person undertaking, one that
cannot be negotiated in a Twitter feed. This volume is essential
for any student of America’s international affairs over the
past five decades.”—Robert L. Dilenschneider, chairman and
founder of the Dilenschneider Group, Inc., and author of Power and
Influence and On Power
“A prime resource for anyone seeking a better understanding of
modern American diplomacy and its historical underpinnings. Rich
with insights into the U.S. State Department, the Foreign Service
in particular, and the government’s foreign-policy apparatus, this
memoir reads easily and compellingly. Readers will learn, through
Harriet Elam-Thomas’s eyes, how U.S. foreign policy and diplomacy
evolved over the past four decades.”—Gen. James L. Jones, USMC
(Ret.), former national security advisor and former supreme Allied
commander Europe and combatant commander USEUCOM
“This captivating, inspiring memoir breathes life into the
American dream, recounting Elam-Thomas’s exciting, improbable
rise through the diplomatic ranks using the arts as a diplomatic
tool while proving the value of cultural competency and diversity
in U.S. foreign policy.”—Ambassador Ruth A. Davis (Ret.)
“Featuring lively portrayals of diverse people and places, this
clearly written memoir describes success in meeting the challenges
of race and gender during forty-two years in the Foreign
Service. The importance of family support that nurtured
sustaining personal beliefs is highlighted along with other
significant human relationships and career experiences turned into
positive opportunities to grow and learn.”—Vivian R. Johnson,
associate professor of education emerita at Boston University
“Ambassador Harriet Elam-Thomas, always self-assured and humble,
has made a definitive and tangible difference in the world. This
thoroughly engaging read reveals how the convergence of empathy,
compassion, persuasion, and ‘diversifying diplomacy’ can make us
all contributors to our global story.”—Carmen J. Smith, vice
president of creative development and inclusive strategies at Walt
Disney Imagineering
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