Washington, D.C. – Foreign Policy for America (FP4A) is alarmed by the baseless attacks from right-wing pundits and lawmakers against the brave women of the U.S. Secret Service. FP4A stands with these invaluable members of our country’s national security apparatus. Since 1971, women have been an integral part of the U.S. Secret Service and have kept countless national and foreign dignitaries out of harm’s way.
In celebrating their fifty years of service in 2021, the Secret Service emphasized that the first trailblazers were “expected to do everything the men do”— hand-to-hand combat, marksmanship, first aid, human relations, communications, and search and seizure. And they received equal pay for their work.
“I have observed women Secret Service agents across my nearly fifty years of work in the foreign policy arena,” said former NATO Deputy Secretary General and FP4A Advisory Board Member Rose Gottemoeller. “Whether at home or abroad, they are always at the peak of their profession, highly trained and greatly skilled, ready to react in a heartbeat.”
FP4A welcomes calls for a thorough investigation into the events of July 13th leading to the reprehensible assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump. Accountability is needed, and lawmakers asked important questions of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle today. At the same time, we urge lawmakers to refrain from seeking to discredit agents’ competency based on gender, or the U.S. Secret Service’s initiatives to hire a diverse and inclusive workforce.
“Vitriolic attacks against women Secret Service and other law enforcement agents threaten recruitment and could have a dire effect on our national security,” said FP4A Outreach Director Kristina Biyad. “Diversity across national security and law enforcement agencies makes our country stronger and more secure.”
“As one of the first wave of women diplomats who were able to join the Foreign Service after the bar to married women diplomats was dropped, I watched women struggle for decades to have equal opportunities to serve,” said former U.S. Ambassador to Turkmenistan and FP4A Advisory Board Member Amb. Laura Kennedy. “It has been particularly challenging for women in the security field. Those are the women who now serve with distinction in the Marine security detachments who guard every US Embassy, the women diplomatic security officers who help to keep us all safe. Don’t let the misogynists take us back to the last century”.
Now, more than ever, the FP4A community thanks the women of the Secret Service for their heroic work to keep Americans and our allies safe.
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