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Advancing Racial Equity and Social Justice: Lessons for American Diplomacy [1]

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Date: 2024-05 

I was honored to welcome esteemed civil rights lawyer Bryan Stevenson to the Department on March 22 for a discussion about how advancing racial equity supports the Department’s diplomatic mission.

As a public interest lawyer, Bryan Stevenson has dedicated his life to advocating for the “poor, incarcerated, and the condemned” through providing legal representation. He turned his distinctive life’s work into a bestselling novel called Just Mercy, which was later adapted into a feature film.

Just as the Department advocates for due process and the rule of law abroad, Mr. Stevenson champions those democratic values here at home. As the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, Mr. Stevenson advocates for those “illegally convicted, unfairly sentenced, or abused.” In cases that regularly rise to the U.S. Supreme Court, Mr. Stevenson has successfully advocated to overturn 140 wrongful capital convictions and to repeal laws imposing mandatory life without parole sentences on minors.

It was fitting that the Department hosted Mr. Stevenson in the historic Ralph J. Bunche Library. A scholar, activist, and self-described “incurable optimist,” Dr. Bunche was a trailblazer at the Department who, among his many accomplishments, participated in the Dumbarton Oaks Conference establishing the United Nations. Later, he became the first African American and person of African descent to win a Nobel Peace Prize for his work mediating an end to the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict.

Mr. Stevenson’s remarks emphasized the importance of Mr. Bunche’s contributions to the United States, both abroad, and at home, where he was an early leader in the United States’ civil rights movement. There is still much work to be done to achieve the promise of America, including by acknowledging, confronting, and tearing down the institutional barriers to equity and equality that remain.

As Mr. Stevenson said, “Hopelessness is the enemy of justice.” His work provides hope to many forgotten or mistreated by our justice system and his insights, drawn from the lifetime of confronting injustice, served as a reminder to the pivotal role that the Department’s global advocacy for human rights and the rule of law can play in addressing the most pressing challenges of our time.

As we strive to advance American values of equality and justice both at home and abroad, Mr. Stevenson’s reflections about the power of storytelling can advance our diplomatic endeavors. His call to action challenges us to confront our nation’s past and present realities with courage and conviction, fostering meaningful dialogue and sustainable change

We are grateful for his visit to the Bunche Library and hope to welcome him again soon. Our workforce will continue to learn from his leadership and advocacy in the pursuit of a more equitable world. His visit has sparked important conversations and renewed our commitment to advancing human rights around the world.

Taylor Emerson, a valued member of the State Department workforce from the Educational and Cultural Affairs Bureau, said: “I am incredibly grateful to D-MR’s team for hosting Bryan Stevenson at the State Department. Mr. Stevenson is truly a modern-day Martin Luther King Jr. His words not only inspired me but also felt like a call to action. A few days later, I sent a long email to my family, sharing my notes from the event and continuing a conversation we had started after watching JUST MERCY about ways we can deepen our understanding of Black history and the Civil Rights struggles, particularly in the South.”

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[1] Url: https://www.state.gov/advancing-racial-equity-and-social-justice-lessons-for-american-diplomacy/?utm_source=dipnote&utm_medium=hero&utm_id=123

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