Today, President Obama made two major announcements about changes (or proposed changes) to his administration.
First, he announced that he has appointed Susan Rice, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, as his new national security advisor. The media has been buzzing with commentary about this decision and what it will mean for the Obama Administration’s foreign policy. One thing that we can say is that Ambassador Rice has a history of publicly supporting measures to help stop the violence of Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). In June 2012 she met in-person with our CEO, Ben Keesey and two Invisible Children student representatives to accept 3.7 million KONY 2012 pledges of commitment from people around the world who want to see an end to LRA violence. As Ambassador Rice accepted the pledges, she said this:
“I pledge to you on my own personal behalf and on behalf of the U.S. Government that we will continue to … support the efforts of the United Nations, the African Union, the countries in the region to stop the LRA and eliminate them as a threat to the people in the region.” – Ambassador Rice
We hope that now, as President Obama’s national security advisor, Mrs. Rice will use her new position to make sure that the United States follows through on its commitments to help protect civilians and see the LRA fully disarmed.
The President also announced today that he will be nominating his former National Security Council advisor, Samantha Power, for the position of the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Samantha Power has an extensive background in law, journalism, and human rights work. She has written numerous articles about U.S. foreign policy, particularly in regards to the prevention of mass atrocities; and in 2002, she won a Pulitzer Prize for her book A Problem from Hell: America in the Age of Genocide. Power also recently served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights at the National Security Council.
Both Samantha Power and Susan Rice have a history of strong support for U.S. and international efforts to end LRA violence. We are hopeful that Susan Rice and Samantha Power, if her nomination is confirmed by the Senate, will use these new positions of leadership and influence to push for strong, continued investments from the U.S., regional governments, and the international community to end LRA violence once and for all, and bring Joseph Kony to justice.
Photo Credits
Cover: Official White House photo by Pete Souza
Susan Rice: AFP
Samantha Power: Eric Bridiers
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