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President Obama believes that advancing the human rights of minorities and the marginalized is a fundamental American value. The President was pleased to announce during his trip to Brazil that he and President Rousseff agreed to promote respect for the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals through the establishment of a special rapporteur on LGBT issues at the Organization of American States. This special rapporteur will be the first of its kind in the international system.
Over the past months our diplomats have been engaged in frank, and at times difficult, conversations about the human rights of LGBT persons with governments from around world. This morning, at the United Nations Human Rights Council, some 85 countries joined the United States in reaffirming our joint commitment to end acts of violence and human rights abuses on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. The President is proud of the work we have done to build international consensus on this critical issue and is committed to continuing our determined efforts to advance the human rights of all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. |
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Dear ,
GLIFAA would like to announce an all-members meeting -- Celebrating Women's History Month -- on 30 March from 6pm - 8pm. Look for location details next week -- it will likely be held at the State Department HST building.
GLIFAA is putting together a Pride Committee -- email Ashton Giese to get involved! -The GLIFAA Board |
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GLIFAA Statement on Passing of Warren Christopher
 Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) mourns the passing of former Secretary of State Warren Christopher. As the first Secretary of State to meet with GLIFAA, he was a strong partner of the Clinton Administration's efforts to advance equality in the Federal workforce. In 1994, he issued the first Department policy statement prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, saying, "The Department of State is committed to equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment for all. The Department shall not discriminate among its employees or candidates for employment on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, disability, or sexual orientation." We thank and praise Secretary Christopher for his leadership both on equality issues and in U.S. foreign policy. |
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GLIFAA Supporting Western Hemisphere Affairs Bureau (WHA) LGBT Foreign Affairs Strategy
GLIFAA is planning to support the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs in putting together a comprehensive strategy to address LGBT issues in Latin America and the Caribbean. If you are interested in being part of this team of volunteers (particularly those who are posted in WHA or work on WHA issues), please email GLIFAA President Jon Tollefson. The work may include reporting, drafting policy statements, and other such support. It's a great opportunity to use your skills and expertise to advance LGBT equality in the region! |
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From the President's Desk
Happy spring to GLIFAA members everywhere! We have made good progress this winter on both personnel and foreign policy issues, and we are looking ahead to even greater advancements. From the long-awaited launch of the J1 visa program (for all four foreign services) to supporting the State Department Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs' (WHA) efforts to advance LGBT issues in that region to working with other U.S. Government agencies to include gender identity in their Equal Employment Opportunity policies, GLIFAA has been moving forward.
March is Women's History Month, and March 8 was International Women's Day. Women have faced discrimination throughout the past many years - and even today - in the State Department, USAID, and other agencies. Before 1972, women who were Foreign Service Officers were required to resign from the Foreign Service if they got married, and they could not join in the first place if they were married (what would their husbands do!?!). Diplomatic wives were also included in their husbands' performance reviews before 1972. Despite women in some of the highest positions of our agencies today, we still see a lack of women in leadership roles at a number of levels. GLIFAA works hand-in-hand with all those who seek equality regardless of gender or sexual orientation. We are glad to have such passionate leadership on these issues in Secretary Hillary Clinton and Counselor Cheryl Mills.
GLIFAA had a great meeting on Tuesday, March 15 with Under Secretary of State Patrick Kennedy on a number of management issues, including implementation of the J1 program, partner accreditation, LGBT recruitment, training within the Department on LGBT issues, support for the Department of Defense in their implementation of the Don't Ask Don't Tell repeal, and the first annual GLIFAA Equality Award. Under Secretary Kennedy is ever an ally, and we are fortunate to have such good working relations with him and the entire Management family. Thank you to Michelle Schohn, Jeffrey Miller, and TJ Lunardi for also attending.
Looking forward, GLIFAA will continue to support the Administration on the inclusion of LGBT issues in foreign policy and development assistance. We will continue to coordinate with nongovernmental organizations, foreign governments, and individual LGBT and human rights activists who promote LGBT equality in every part of the world. And we will continue to work toward equal pay, equal benefits, and equal protection for LGBT personnel in all foreign affairs agencies. We encourage everyone interested in equality (LGBT or not) to join GLIFAA, to register as post representatives, and to look around and see how you can support LGBT equality in your job and in your community.
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Summary of February All-Member Meeting
We had a great meeting on February 25 with about 25 GLIFAA members in attendance, including some original members. Thanks so much to Matt Paschke for hosting! It was a wonderful discussion and we were able to move forward some ideas that we had been throwing around, as well as gain some ideas and direction for new projects. Thanks to Russel Brown and Mitch Cohn for providing some stories and perspective from the early years of GLIFAA. Some highlights include the following:
- Have presenters at all-member meetings, as the group has done in the past, including topics such as tandem bidding, legal document preparation, kids abroad, etc.
- GLIFAA should be more involved in recruitment.
- Film "It Gets Better" videos in other languages for distribution abroad.
- Update information in the Overseas Briefing Center and elsewhere on conditions for LGBT people living abroad.
- Have Community Liaison Officers offer overt activities abroad for LGBT people and families (perhaps even hosting Pride celebrations).
- Advocate benefits for same-sex partners of locally employed staff.
- Focus on "inreach," instructing State Department, USAID, and other agency personnel on LGBT issues.
- Work with insurance providers to offer options for same-sex partners.
- Work more with foreign diplomatic corps here in Washington and get a better sense of LGBT members in the corps.
- Support DOD in their Don't Ask Don't Tell implementation efforts, as well as with how we work together abroad.
If you have other ideas or comments on these, please send an email to President Jon Tollefson. |
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GLIFAA Happy Hour - April 12th
Join GLIFAA as we gather with new friends and colleagues at our regularly scheduled 2nd Tuesday Happy Hour at Nellies!
Location: Nellie's Sports Bar 900 U Street NW Metro: U Street (Green/Yellow Line) Tuesday, April 12th 6:00pm-8:00pm |
 GLIFAA Meets with International Visitor Grantees who support LGBT Issues Abroad President Jon Tollefson and Treasurer John Wiecking met with Jiang Hua and Alice Nkom, two former IV grantees, in February. Mr. Hua runs a health clinic in Chengdu and militates for greater attention to the psychology of the closet as a factor in HIV transmission; Madame Nkom, a lawyer in Cameroon, defends gay men put in detention on questionable legal grounds for homosexuality. |
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Nominate Transformational Leaders @ USAID!
USAID/General Notice
INFORMATION HR/ELR
03/15/2011
Subject: REMINDER -- 10-Day Countdown To Deadline for Causey Award
Nominations
The Office of Human Resouces wishes to remind you that there are only 10 days left to submit nominations for the Causey Awards due March 25,2011! If you've already nominated that deserving employee be sure to share a copy of the nomination with HR/ELR.
The Causey Awards focus on people who have gone above and beyond to help the Government operate better whether they be career employees, political appointees or contractors. They believe "leaders" can have any title and that good work can be done by anybody in the organization. The Causey Awards is an opportunity to acknowledge work done by people who don't always get the recognition they deserve.
Individuals who receive The Causey have been nominated by their peers for their outstanding achievements and important contributions to the human capital management field in 2010. The award honors Mike Causey, Federal News Radio Senior Correspondent, and his life-long dedication to the reporting of federal workforce management and federal pay and benefits issues.
To nominate someone fill out the form found at http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?nid=291&sid=1867701.
A panel of judges who have spent their careers in human capital management in government and industry will then choose the winners based on your nominations.
We have some broad guidelines here. But some specific highlights to keep in mind:
- HR plus: Yes, we are focusing on human capital issues, but this is a very broad topic. Perhaps there is somebody who you would like to nominate for their work on information technology workforce issues or somebody working in acquisition human capital issues. Go ahead - think
outside of the traditional box.
- Focus on 2010: We are specifically looking for work done in 2010. We specifically don't want The Causey Awards to be a lifetime recognition program.
- People, not programs: The Causey Awards focus on people who have gone above and beyond in 2010. Yes, there are scores of people behind every success but we're looking for the person who was most responsible.
- What did the person do? That's essentially the question our judges will be looking to answer. What did this person do that went above and beyond to help the government operate better? The more clearly you answer that question, the better.
- Career, political, and contractors: The fact is there is good work done by career government workers, by political appointees, and also by government contractors. We're looking for anybody in the government world.
- Leaders can have any title: In the end, we know that good work can be done by anybody in the organization. In fact, sometimes it is a front-line person who can have the broadest impact or truly make a difference. This is an opportunity to acknowledge work done by people who don't always get the recognition that they deserve.
Some tips:
- Word counts: Yes, we limit words. Remember, our judges are going to have to cull through a number of nominations, so make your case.
- Make your case. Tell us why this person deserves recognition.
- NOTE: We do collect your information. This will not be used for any purpose other than for The Causey Awards without your authorization. Nominations will be accepted through Friday, March 25, 2011. Feel free to nominate as many people as you would like.
The Causey awards will be announced the week of May 2, 2011 on air (1500 and 820AM) and online at http://www.FederalNewsRadio.com.
Nominators are required to provide HR/ELR with a copy of the nomination.
Any questions concerning this notice may be directed to
-- Lynn Mason, HR/ELR, (202) 712-1286, lmason@usaid.gov.
Notice 0369
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April 4 - May 27 -- Open Season for Long Term Health Care Insurance
Open Season - Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) - April 4 through May 27, 2011 All eligible individuals who are not currently enrolled in FLTCIP may apply for coverage, including employees, and annuitants. Current employees, their spouses, or same-sex domestic partners of civilian active workforce members will be subject to abbreviated underwriting which means they will be required to provide additional medical information. All other qualified relatives will be subject to the Program's standard requirements for full underwriting of applications. To obtain information about FLTCIP as well as get an application to enroll, please visit the Long Term Care Insurance website at: http://www.ltcfeds.com/ |
 Donate! - LGBT Foreign Affairs Scholarship
The LGBT Foreign Affairs Scholarship Board will award one $2,500 scholarship to a disadvantaged student who plans to intern in a foreign affairs-related field. The LGBT Foreign Affairs Scholarship serves as need and merit-based financial aid for students pursuing degrees and/or careers in foreign affairs.
The fund helps reduce the personal costs for students in high cost housing areas such as Washington, DC or in other world capitols or cities. The Scholarship partners with GLIFAA to foster knowledge of international issues and careers for disadvantaged youth.
The scholarship committee will award the scholarship based on the following criteria:
Demonstrated financial need
Demonstrated strong interest in working in foreign affairs
A committed LGBT advocate
Attainment sophomore status or higher
Contact Ashton Giese to find out more about the organization. Email lgbtscholarship@glifaa.org.
GLIFAA
P.O. Box 18774
Washington, DC 20036-8774
Memo: "Scholarship"
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