WorldView Magazine: racial justice
Lifting Every Voice: William Robertson
William Robertson (1933–2021) was the first Black American to serve as an aide to a Virginia governor. He went on to serve five U.S. presidents and lead Peace Corps posts. By Catherine Gardner Photo of William Robertson courtesy University of Virginia Press The first Black American to serve as an aide to a Virginia governor, William Robertson sought ways to enact change and transform systems. After earning degrees in education at Bluefield State College in West Virginia, he helped integrate a white school in Roanoke as a teacher, and was the first African American member of the Roanoke Jaycees civic...
Stories of Racism — Confronted by a Family with Courage and Love
A tribute to decades of work by children’s author Mildred D. Taylor. This year, Peace Corps Writers recognized her with the Writer of the Year Award. By John Coyne Illustration by Montse Bernal Mildred Delois Taylor is a critically acclaimed author of children’s novels. In 1977, she won the Newbery Medal, the most prestigious award in children’s literature, for her historical novel Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. It was the second book in a series of ten novels focusing on the Logan family, and portraying the effects of racism counterbalanced with courage and love. Her latest book, All the Days...
Learning History, Not Hate
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Leading in a Time of Adversity. A conversation convened as Part of Peace Corps Connect 2021. Image by Shutterstock Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) are currently the fastest-growing racial or ethnic group in the U.S., but the story of the U.S. AAPI population dates back decades — and is often overlooked. As the community faces an increase in anti-Asian hate crimes and the widening income gap between the wealthiest and poorest, their role in politics and social justice is increasingly important. The AAPI story is also complex — 22 million Asian Americans...
President’s Letter: An Historic Moment
A time to honor the past — and commit to a different future By Glenn Blumhorst Illustration by Richard Borge HERE’S A FAMILIAR CELEBRATORY REFRAIN: On March 1, 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed Executive Order 10924, establishing the Peace Corps with the mission of building world peace and friendship. In honor of that beginning, every spring is a time for us to recognize the ways that the Peace Corps has made an impact — in individual lives and in communities around the globe. But this year is different. And an unprecedented time in so many ways. One year...
You Are Going to Do Something to Defeat It
Civil rights attorney Elaine Jones talks with Jalina Porter Photo: Elaine Jones. Courtesy Elaine Jones Elaine Jones has led a landmark career that has included being the first woman to direct the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the first African American woman to attend law school at the University of Virginia. Where she learned the lessons in diplomacy that prepared her for that: Peace Corps in Turkey. The daughter of a Pullman porter and a schoolteacher, Elaine Ruth Jones was born in Norfolk, Virginia, and was raised in the Jim Crow South. She has spoken of the importance of understanding...
An Even More Towering Task
An Unprecedented Year. And Insurrection at the Capitol. By Glenn Blumhorst Photo: Makeshift Fence Memorials to Capitol Police Officers Brian D. Sicknick and Howard Liebengood. By Elvert Barnes For so many of us, the year 2020 seemed the challenge of a lifetime. But if anyone was built to persevere through the crises these months presented, it’s Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. Having endured a tumultuous year marked by a global health pandemic, racial disarray and instability, and the first-ever global evacuation of Volunteers, we could use skills we learned and experiences that have shaped us to take on many roles, including working professional,...
Pioneer in Justice: Drew S. Days III
First African American to lead the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice — and the first Black man to lead any division at Justice, period. Photo Courtesy Yale Law School Drew S. Days III was appointed to the Department of Justince in 1977 under President Jimmy Carter. He later served as solicitor general of the United States under President Bill Clinton. Gentle, courageous, and kind, he devoted much of his career to striving for racial equality. Born in Atlanta in 1941, he grew up in Tampa, Florida, and at the age of 30 won a lawsuit that desegregated...
African Americans and the Future of the Peace Corps
Recruitment, support — and what next? It’s a conversation we’ve had again and again. Here are some ideas, insights, and hard truths. ON SEPTEMBER 15, 2020, THE CONSTITUENCY FOR AFRICA convened a group of past, present, and future Peace Corps leaders for the annual Ronald H. Brown African Affairs series. It’s a timely and needed conversation — with all Peace Corps Volunteers evacuated from around the world because of COVID-19, and as our nation grapples with pandemics of coronavirus and systemic racism. The conversation was moderated by educational consultant Eldridge “Skip” Gilbert, who served as a Volunteer in Sierra Leone (1967–69). Edited...
Making Our Mark
President’s Letter: Now is a time to commit to building a legacy of inclusive peace. By Glenn Blumhorst Photo by Summer Gardner / Black RPCV in the DMV What a year this has been! What began as what many of us hoped might be a year of “perfect” 20/20 vision to achieve our new year’s resolutions, business plans, and interpersonal goals turned out to be one of the most challenging years of our lifetime — profoundly so for the Peace Corps community. Though shortly after the beginning of the year, we were concerned by legislation that proposed ending the independence of Peace Corps. Pandemic led to a global evacuation of Volunteers...
Each Generation Must Do Its Part
Darlene Grant on her task to help shape “a more just and equitable Peace Corps” Illustration by Edward Rooks At a time of national reckoning with racial injustice — and the Peace Corps has heard calls from Volunteers to do better in confronting systemic racism as it affects the agency — a new top level advisor has come on board to lead work to create “a more just and equitable Peace Corps.” Darlene Grant’s official title is senior advisor to Director Jody Olsen. The excerpted Q&A below gives a sense of the scope of her work. You can read...
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