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Greetings!
GLIFAA hopes you are enjoying summer - and hopefully some vacation time. We have a few upcoming events in DC. Also we will have an all-members meeting in the Fall - look for information about that soon!
Ashton Giese
Director of Public Affairs and Communications
The GLIFAA Board
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Upcoming Events
Cafe Asia Dinner/Drinks
1720 I Street NW
Wednesday, August 8
6pm - 8pm
Join us for food, fun, and discussion!
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Madame Speaker Keynotes at HRC Dinner
Sign up now with GLIFAA as Table Captain
 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi will be the keynote speaker at the HRC National Dinner! Sign up now to attend this 5-6 hour event Saturday, October 6, 2007. Designate GLIFAA/Aaron Jensen (President) as your table captain.
The Human Rights Campaign and the National Dinner Committee invite
you to join members, friends and family of the GLBT community at its
11th Annual National Dinner.
Each
year, its 3000 attendees gather from across the nation to celebrate the
continuing successes of the GLBT community and HRC, America's largest
civil rights organization dedicated to achieving GLBT equality. Visit: NRC National Dinner Please note that you designate your Table Captain towards the end of your ticket purchase online.
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USAID Summer Meet-up
Dine with your AID Colleagues!
If you work at USAID, are
affiliated with USAID, or just want to meet some of the USAID GLIFAA
contingent, join us for lunch during the dog days of August! Date and location
(typically a restaurant near the Federal Triangle or
Metro Center
metro stops) will be determined based on interest. Let us know if one of the following
days is more convenient for you: Tue, Wed, or Thu (14-16 Aug). Please RSVP to
Rebecca Maestri, rmaestri@usaid.gov or 202.712.0405
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GLBT in the Peace Corps
Ajit Yoshi moderated at a panel of returned Peace Corps volunteers (RPCVs) on June 13, 2007 at Peace Corps Headquarters
I felt humbled to be invited to moderate this compelling discussion. My role involved kicking off the forum by talking about the realities of life for gay men and lesbians serving overseas.
Using that foundation, I wove together each of the RPCVs' thoughts on having served overseas as a gay or lesbian volunteer. I focused not only on what was said, but what was not said, in order to glean the key issues that are relevant to the realities of Peace Corps today.
Having listened to the panelists, what came through most clearly was that coming out as a gay or lesbian person is an intensely powerful and internal process and one that needs lots of institutional support, in fact affirming and positive institutional support. That coming out process is crucial in a volunteer's ability to feel happy and to be productive on the job. It appears to be as critical for retention.
It was clear to me that while we have a long way to go in terms of providing benefits to those serving in a foreign affairs agency, or volunteering overseas, being content in one's own skin, and being comfortable, on an emotional level as a gay man or lesbian is paramount. An employee or volunteer needs to be comfortable, proud, and happy with his/her sexual orientation. Even in countries where we may think that there may be sensitivities, where politics and culture may clash with American values of civil rights, the real test seemed to be one's own ability to "weather" the challenges of the posting. Based on what I heard, the ability to "weather" the posting seems to be a function about one's sense of self worth, which clearly includes his/her sexual orientation. On the other hand, if someone chooses to be in the closet, there are less coping mechanisms available to the volunteer, often jeopardizing the volunteer's sense of safety and productivity.
Volunteers- and foreign affairs agency employees - clearly need to be rock solid in their sense of self and who they are and not be scared to let others know. When they are comfortable, then the issues just resolve themselves. In that place of self-confidence, we can more clearly articulate for the benefits we so rightly deserve. In fact, if we are to serve in harm's way and be productive, it seems to me that we have to be comfortable with who we are - in all respects.
In my capacity as moderating, and listening to the stories, I found that institution needs to fully embrace an employee or a volunteer as a person just as much as an employee or volunteer needs to embrace his/her identity. I was pleased to hear that PC's recruitment brochure now has quotes from out gay returned Peace Corps volunteers. While a start, most would argue that's not enough, especially when PC has no policy for gay and lesbian tandem couples to serve together overseas.
So, what's next, what do we have to learn? Several recommendations also came up from the panel, some of which may be useful for us in each of our respective foreign affairs agencies - distributing "safe space" stickers to those that deal a lot with employee issues or new recruits. Such stickers could be rainbow or pink triangle stickers and say "ally" or "safe space," letting someone know that they are welcome and affirmed. Since we don't have the military's don't ask don't tell policy, being more positive and welcoming seems to be a good next step. A welcoming environment could also include an extra session in training, sensitizing recruitment officers, and sensitizing Peace Corps country directors.
Overall, it seemed that the key issues were - being comfortable in one's own skin, sensitizing all PC staff - HQ and field, providing training that includes gay concerns in a positive and affirmative way for all employees including volunteers and those making decisions about volunteers' welfare, and following through on commitments of support.
I found my time at Peace Corps to be well spent, and was thrilled to represent USAID and GLIFAA.
These are the author's comments and do not represent the policies of the USG or USAID. For more information or a copy of written remarks, please contact Ajit at AJoshi@usaid.gov.
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Interested in Speaking in San Francisco??!
The 2007 Reaching Out Conference for MBA Students
Kyle Newell
 I am an MBA student at Purdue University in the United States. I'm helping coordinate the 2007 Reaching Out conference for GLBT MBA students, in particular a panel on international development. The panel is on October 12 in San Francisco. Already confirmed is a representative from the United Nations Development Programme and Deutsche Bank. In recent years both corporations and international agencies have realized a need to change the way they address developing country economies. However, working in this sector provides unique challenges for the LGBT community. How is it to be 'out' at organizations such as the World Bank and United Nations, or working for a multi-national company working in developing countries? The panel will highlight LGBT people working in this field and discuss implications of being out in emerging markets.
The mission for 2007 builds upon this goal focusing on three key themes: Connecting the LGBT global business community by uniting students and professionals from around the world in a dynamic and innovative setting. Building leadership within the LGBT global business community by fostering the training and mentorship vital to reaching the upper echelons of business. Achieving new heights by equipping our LGBT leaders with the tools to overcome any barriers to personal and professional success.
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CLO Juarez, Mexico Celebrates Pride!
In honor of gay pride month, on June 27th, the Cd. Juarez CLO Office, with support from GLIFAA (Gays and Lesbians In Foreign Affairs Agencies), sponsored an event to show our support of gays and lesbians in the Foreign Service. Over 100 people wore rainbow ribbons to show their support and enjoyed the cupcakes donated by Juan Arellano and Nell Robinson. The rainbow has long symbolized diversity within the gay community and was a way for everyone to show their support for diversity. We also held a Happy Hour after work at Las Malas Compañias. We received many positive comments about the event and were told it was a great morale booster.
This article is taken from the "Borderland Bulletin," the Juarez Consulate Newsletter, June 29, 2007, page 7. Submitted by Rachel Mandal, Newsletter Editor.
Please submit your own articles regarding GLBT-related events at your post!!! Send to glifaa@yahoo.com
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