FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL BILL BAER DELIVERS REMARKS AT A PRESS CONFERENCE ON FOREIGN EXCHANGE SPOT MARKET MANIPULATION
Remarks as prepared for delivery
WASHINGTON, D.C.
I want to thank the Attorney General – on behalf of the women and men of the Criminal and Antitrust Divisions and the FBI – for her leadership and support in prosecuting these cases. And I applaud the great teamwork from the Bureau and the Criminal and Antitrust Divisions that led to the results we are announcing today, and the ongoing cooperation in financial services cases from our colleagues at the Commodities Futures Trading Commission.
Today’s guilty pleas to criminal charges represent major developments in our investigation into collusion affecting foreign exchange markets, particularly the spot market for trading U.S. dollars and euros. The antitrust guilty pleas announced today involving four major international financial institutions – Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase, The Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays – are without precedent. In light of the seriousness of the crimes and the unjustified benefit to the bottom lines of these banks, we demanded parent-level guilty pleas, secured record fines of more than $2.5 billion and insisted upon three years of court-supervised probation.
The dollar–euro spot market is as big as it gets. Every day about $500 billion worth of dollars and euros are traded in this market. Trading on the dollar-euro spot market is five times larger than all U.S. stock exchanges combined.
Simply put, exchange rates are prices to buy and sell currency. They should be set competitively the same way prices are set in any type of market. Instead, the members of the aptly-named “Cartel” chatroom conspired to gain unlawful profit by manipulating these rates. The banks pleading guilty today are not ordinary market participants. They are “market makers,” representing 25 percent or more of dollar–euro exchange rate transactions each year. As such, they were uniquely positioned to manipulate the market.
And that is what they did. First, they agreed to rig the 1:15 p.m. and 4 p.m. “fixes.” These fixes are designed to be snapshots of the euro–dollar exchange rates at a given point in time, reported by unbiased third parties. The snapshot rates become the price paid for billions of dollars of currency bought or sold on any given day. “The Cartel” conspirators used chat room communications in the minutes and seconds leading up to the snapshot moment to move the fix price in the direction that would be most profitable to them, thereby cheating customers who relied on those fixes to fairly reflect market prices.
Second, members of “The Cartel” also hatched plans in the chatroom to protect the conspiring banks at other times during the day by agreeing to hold off buying or selling dollars and euros. By not trading at these times, or “standing down,” members of “The Cartel” minimized price movements and helped each other close out of their open positions profitably – at the expense of customers and counterparties who expected, and were entitled to receive, a competitive dollar–euro exchange rate.
It is imperative that these banks accept full responsibility for these bad acts and carry through on their commitments to change the culture that allowed this behavior to go on for years without detection. That is why we have insisted on parent-level guilty pleas, record-level criminal penalties, ongoing cooperation with our investigations and a probation period of three years, during which time each bank’s efforts to implement effective compliance programs will be monitored.
Again, my thanks to the hard working team that produced the results we are announcing this morning. Let me now introduce the head of the Criminal Division – Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell.
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
DOD REPORTS AIRSTRIKES CONTINUE AGAINST ISIL
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Inherent Resolve Airstrikes Continue in Syria, Iraq
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 20, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted nine airstrikes in Syria:
-- Near Hasakah, seven airstrikes struck two large and two small ISIL tactical units, destroying two ISIL vehicles, two ISIL fighting positions, three ISIL armored vehicles and an ISIL anti-aircraft artillery system.
-- Near Kobani, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying four ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL vehicles.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 16 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Asad, six airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying four ISIL structures, an ISIL vehicle-borne improvised explosive device and an ISIL mortar system.
-- Near Huwayjah, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL building and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
-- Near Beiji, four airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL structure and an ISIL VBIED.
-- Near Fallujah, an airstrike struck a large ISIL tactical unit, destroying three ISIL buildings.
-- Near Mosul, two airstrikes struck an ISIL weapons manufacturing facility and an ISIL checkpoint.
-- Near Sinjar, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL buildings, an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL vehicle.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Inherent Resolve Airstrikes Continue in Syria, Iraq
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 20, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted nine airstrikes in Syria:
-- Near Hasakah, seven airstrikes struck two large and two small ISIL tactical units, destroying two ISIL vehicles, two ISIL fighting positions, three ISIL armored vehicles and an ISIL anti-aircraft artillery system.
-- Near Kobani, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying four ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL vehicles.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 16 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Asad, six airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying four ISIL structures, an ISIL vehicle-borne improvised explosive device and an ISIL mortar system.
-- Near Huwayjah, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL building and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
-- Near Beiji, four airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL structure and an ISIL VBIED.
-- Near Fallujah, an airstrike struck a large ISIL tactical unit, destroying three ISIL buildings.
-- Near Mosul, two airstrikes struck an ISIL weapons manufacturing facility and an ISIL checkpoint.
-- Near Sinjar, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL buildings, an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL vehicle.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
5 BIG BANKS PLEAD GUILTY TO FELONY CHARGES RELATED TO FOREIGN CURRENCY EXCHANGE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc Agree to Plead Guilty In Connection With The Foreign Exchange Market and Agree to Pay More Than $2.5 Billion In Criminal Fines
UBS AG Agrees to Plead Guilty to Manipulating LIBOR; Admits its Conduct in Foreign Exchange Market Breached Its Non-Prosecution Agreement Resolving the LIBOR Investigation and Agrees to Pay $203 Million
WASHINGTON — Five major banks – Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc and UBS AG – have agreed to plead guilty to felony charges. Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc have agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to manipulate the price of U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the foreign currency exchange (FX) spot market and the banks have agreed to pay criminal fines totaling more than $2.5 billion. A fifth bank, UBS AG, has agreed to plead guilty to manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) and other benchmark interest rates and pay a $203 million criminal penalty, after breaching its December 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the LIBOR investigation.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Director Aitan Goelman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division made the announcement.
"Today’s historic resolutions are the latest in our ongoing efforts to investigate and prosecute financial crimes, and they serve as a stark reminder that this Department of Justice intends to vigorously prosecute all those who tilt the economic system in their favor; who subvert our marketplaces; and who enrich themselves at the expense of American consumers," said Attorney General Lynch. "The penalty these banks will now pay is fitting considering the long-running and egregious nature of their anticompetitive conduct. It is commensurate with the pervasive harm done. And it should deter competitors in the future from chasing profits without regard to fairness, to the law, or to the public welfare."
“The charged conspiracy fixed the U.S. dollar – euro exchange rate, affecting currencies that are at the heart of international commerce and undermining the integrity and the competitiveness of foreign currency exchange markets which account for hundreds of billions of dollars worth of transactions every day,” said Assistant Attorney General Baer. “The seriousness of the crime warrants the parent-level guilty pleas by Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS.”
“The five parent-level guilty pleas that the department is announcing today communicate loud and clear that we will hold financial institutions accountable for criminal misconduct,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “And we will enforce the agreements that we enter into with corporations. If appropriate and proportional to the misconduct and the company’s track record, we will tear up an NPA or a DPA and prosecute the offending company.”
“These resolutions make clear that the U.S. Government will not tolerate criminal behavior in any sector of the financial markets,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “This investigation represents another step in the FBI’s ongoing efforts to find and stop those responsible for complex financial schemes for their own personal benefit. I commend the special agents, forensic accountants, and analysts, as well as the prosecutors for the significant time and resources they committed to investigating this case.”
According to plea agreements to be filed in the District of Connecticut, between December 2007 and January 2013, euro-dollar traders at Citicorp, JPMorgan, Barclays and RBS – self-described members of “The Cartel” – used an exclusive electronic chat room and coded language to manipulate benchmark exchange rates. Those rates are set through, among other ways, two major daily “fixes,” the 1:15 p.m. European Central Bank fix and the 4:00 p.m. World Markets/Reuters fix. Third parties collect trading data at these times to calculate and publish a daily “fix rate,” which in turn is used to price orders for many large customers. “The Cartel” traders coordinated their trading of U.S. dollars and euros to manipulate the benchmark rates set at the 1:15 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. fixes in an effort to increase their profits.
As detailed in the plea agreements, these traders also used their exclusive electronic chats to manipulate the euro-dollar exchange rate in other ways. Members of “The Cartel” manipulated the euro-dollar exchange rate by agreeing to withhold bids or offers for euros or dollars to avoid moving the exchange rate in a direction adverse to open positions held by co-conspirators. By agreeing not to buy or sell at certain times, the traders protected each other’s trading positions by withholding supply of or demand for currency and suppressing competition in the FX market.
Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS each have agreed to plead guilty to a one-count felony charge of conspiring to fix prices and rig bids for U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the FX spot market in the United States and elsewhere. Each bank has agreed to pay a criminal fine proportional to its involvement in the conspiracy:
Citicorp, which was involved from as early as December 2007 until at least January 2013, has agreed to pay a fine of $925 million;
Barclays, which was involved from as early as December 2007 until July 2011, and then from December 2011 until August 2012, has agreed to pay a fine of $650 million;
JPMorgan, which was involved from at least as early as July 2010 until January 2013, has agreed to pay a fine of $550 million; and
RBS, which was involved from at least as early as December 2007 until at least April 2010, has agreed to pay a fine of $395 million.
Barclays has further agreed that its FX trading and sales practices and its FX collusive conduct constitute federal crimes that violated a principal term of its June 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the department’s investigation of the manipulation of LIBOR and other benchmark interests rates. Barclays has agreed to pay an additional $60 million criminal penalty based on its violation of the non-prosecution agreement.
In addition, according to court documents to be filed, the Justice Department has determined that UBS’s deceptive currency trading and sales practices in conducting certain FX market transactions, as well as its collusive conduct in certain FX markets, violated its December 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the LIBOR investigation. The department has declared UBS in breach of the agreement, and UBS has agreed to plead guilty to a one-count felony charge of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to manipulate LIBOR and other benchmark interest rates. UBS has also agreed to pay a criminal penalty of $203 million.
According to the factual statement of breach attached to UBS’s plea agreement, UBS engaged in deceptive FX trading and sales practices after it signed the LIBOR non-prosecution agreement, including undisclosed markups added to certain FX transactions of customers. UBS traders and sales staff misrepresented to customers on certain transactions that markups were not being added, when in fact they were. On other occasions, UBS traders and sales staff used hand signals to conceal those markups from customers. On still other occasions, certain UBS traders also tracked and executed limit orders at a level different from the customer’s specified level in order to add undisclosed markups. In addition, according to court documents, a UBS FX trader conspired with other banks acting as dealers in the FX spot market by agreeing to restrain competition in the purchase and sale of dollars and euros. UBS participated in this collusive conduct from October 2011 to at least January 2013.
In declaring UBS in breach of its non-prosecution agreement, the Justice Department considered UBS’s conduct described above in light of UBS’s obligation under the non-prosecution agreement to commit no further crimes. The department also considered UBS’s three recent prior criminal resolutions and multiple civil and regulatory resolutions. Further, the department also considered that UBS’s post-LIBOR compliance and remediation efforts failed to detect the illegal conduct until an article was published pointing to potential misconduct in the FX markets.
Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan, RBS and UBS have each agreed to a three-year period of corporate probation, which, if approved by the court, will be overseen by the court and require regular reporting to authorities as well as cessation of all criminal activity. All five banks will continue cooperating with the government’s ongoing criminal investigations, and no plea agreement prevents the department from prosecuting culpable individuals for related misconduct. Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS have agreed to send disclosure notices to all of their customers and counter-parties that may have been affected by the sales and trading practices described in the plea agreements.
Today, in connection with its FX investigation, the Federal Reserve also announced that it was imposing on the five banks fines of over $1.6 billion; and Barclays settled related claims with the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for an additional combined penalty of approximately $1.3 billion. In conjunction with previously announced settlements with regulatory agencies in the United States and abroad, including the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), today’s resolutions bring the total fines and penalties paid by these five banks for their conduct in the FX spot market to nearly $9 billion.
This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. This prosecution is being handled by the Antitrust Division’s New York Office and other criminal enforcement sections and the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The Justice Department appreciates the substantial assistance provided by the CFTC, OCC, FINMA, FCA, Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Reserve Bank, the U.K. Serious Fraud Office and the New York State Department of Financial Services. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Connecticut have also provided assistance in this matter.
Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc Agree to Plead Guilty In Connection With The Foreign Exchange Market and Agree to Pay More Than $2.5 Billion In Criminal Fines
UBS AG Agrees to Plead Guilty to Manipulating LIBOR; Admits its Conduct in Foreign Exchange Market Breached Its Non-Prosecution Agreement Resolving the LIBOR Investigation and Agrees to Pay $203 Million
WASHINGTON — Five major banks – Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc and UBS AG – have agreed to plead guilty to felony charges. Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc have agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to manipulate the price of U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the foreign currency exchange (FX) spot market and the banks have agreed to pay criminal fines totaling more than $2.5 billion. A fifth bank, UBS AG, has agreed to plead guilty to manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) and other benchmark interest rates and pay a $203 million criminal penalty, after breaching its December 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the LIBOR investigation.
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Director Aitan Goelman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division made the announcement.
"Today’s historic resolutions are the latest in our ongoing efforts to investigate and prosecute financial crimes, and they serve as a stark reminder that this Department of Justice intends to vigorously prosecute all those who tilt the economic system in their favor; who subvert our marketplaces; and who enrich themselves at the expense of American consumers," said Attorney General Lynch. "The penalty these banks will now pay is fitting considering the long-running and egregious nature of their anticompetitive conduct. It is commensurate with the pervasive harm done. And it should deter competitors in the future from chasing profits without regard to fairness, to the law, or to the public welfare."
“The charged conspiracy fixed the U.S. dollar – euro exchange rate, affecting currencies that are at the heart of international commerce and undermining the integrity and the competitiveness of foreign currency exchange markets which account for hundreds of billions of dollars worth of transactions every day,” said Assistant Attorney General Baer. “The seriousness of the crime warrants the parent-level guilty pleas by Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS.”
“The five parent-level guilty pleas that the department is announcing today communicate loud and clear that we will hold financial institutions accountable for criminal misconduct,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “And we will enforce the agreements that we enter into with corporations. If appropriate and proportional to the misconduct and the company’s track record, we will tear up an NPA or a DPA and prosecute the offending company.”
“These resolutions make clear that the U.S. Government will not tolerate criminal behavior in any sector of the financial markets,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “This investigation represents another step in the FBI’s ongoing efforts to find and stop those responsible for complex financial schemes for their own personal benefit. I commend the special agents, forensic accountants, and analysts, as well as the prosecutors for the significant time and resources they committed to investigating this case.”
According to plea agreements to be filed in the District of Connecticut, between December 2007 and January 2013, euro-dollar traders at Citicorp, JPMorgan, Barclays and RBS – self-described members of “The Cartel” – used an exclusive electronic chat room and coded language to manipulate benchmark exchange rates. Those rates are set through, among other ways, two major daily “fixes,” the 1:15 p.m. European Central Bank fix and the 4:00 p.m. World Markets/Reuters fix. Third parties collect trading data at these times to calculate and publish a daily “fix rate,” which in turn is used to price orders for many large customers. “The Cartel” traders coordinated their trading of U.S. dollars and euros to manipulate the benchmark rates set at the 1:15 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. fixes in an effort to increase their profits.
As detailed in the plea agreements, these traders also used their exclusive electronic chats to manipulate the euro-dollar exchange rate in other ways. Members of “The Cartel” manipulated the euro-dollar exchange rate by agreeing to withhold bids or offers for euros or dollars to avoid moving the exchange rate in a direction adverse to open positions held by co-conspirators. By agreeing not to buy or sell at certain times, the traders protected each other’s trading positions by withholding supply of or demand for currency and suppressing competition in the FX market.
Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS each have agreed to plead guilty to a one-count felony charge of conspiring to fix prices and rig bids for U.S. dollars and euros exchanged in the FX spot market in the United States and elsewhere. Each bank has agreed to pay a criminal fine proportional to its involvement in the conspiracy:
Citicorp, which was involved from as early as December 2007 until at least January 2013, has agreed to pay a fine of $925 million;
Barclays, which was involved from as early as December 2007 until July 2011, and then from December 2011 until August 2012, has agreed to pay a fine of $650 million;
JPMorgan, which was involved from at least as early as July 2010 until January 2013, has agreed to pay a fine of $550 million; and
RBS, which was involved from at least as early as December 2007 until at least April 2010, has agreed to pay a fine of $395 million.
Barclays has further agreed that its FX trading and sales practices and its FX collusive conduct constitute federal crimes that violated a principal term of its June 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the department’s investigation of the manipulation of LIBOR and other benchmark interests rates. Barclays has agreed to pay an additional $60 million criminal penalty based on its violation of the non-prosecution agreement.
In addition, according to court documents to be filed, the Justice Department has determined that UBS’s deceptive currency trading and sales practices in conducting certain FX market transactions, as well as its collusive conduct in certain FX markets, violated its December 2012 non-prosecution agreement resolving the LIBOR investigation. The department has declared UBS in breach of the agreement, and UBS has agreed to plead guilty to a one-count felony charge of wire fraud in connection with a scheme to manipulate LIBOR and other benchmark interest rates. UBS has also agreed to pay a criminal penalty of $203 million.
According to the factual statement of breach attached to UBS’s plea agreement, UBS engaged in deceptive FX trading and sales practices after it signed the LIBOR non-prosecution agreement, including undisclosed markups added to certain FX transactions of customers. UBS traders and sales staff misrepresented to customers on certain transactions that markups were not being added, when in fact they were. On other occasions, UBS traders and sales staff used hand signals to conceal those markups from customers. On still other occasions, certain UBS traders also tracked and executed limit orders at a level different from the customer’s specified level in order to add undisclosed markups. In addition, according to court documents, a UBS FX trader conspired with other banks acting as dealers in the FX spot market by agreeing to restrain competition in the purchase and sale of dollars and euros. UBS participated in this collusive conduct from October 2011 to at least January 2013.
In declaring UBS in breach of its non-prosecution agreement, the Justice Department considered UBS’s conduct described above in light of UBS’s obligation under the non-prosecution agreement to commit no further crimes. The department also considered UBS’s three recent prior criminal resolutions and multiple civil and regulatory resolutions. Further, the department also considered that UBS’s post-LIBOR compliance and remediation efforts failed to detect the illegal conduct until an article was published pointing to potential misconduct in the FX markets.
Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan, RBS and UBS have each agreed to a three-year period of corporate probation, which, if approved by the court, will be overseen by the court and require regular reporting to authorities as well as cessation of all criminal activity. All five banks will continue cooperating with the government’s ongoing criminal investigations, and no plea agreement prevents the department from prosecuting culpable individuals for related misconduct. Citicorp, Barclays, JPMorgan and RBS have agreed to send disclosure notices to all of their customers and counter-parties that may have been affected by the sales and trading practices described in the plea agreements.
Today, in connection with its FX investigation, the Federal Reserve also announced that it was imposing on the five banks fines of over $1.6 billion; and Barclays settled related claims with the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for an additional combined penalty of approximately $1.3 billion. In conjunction with previously announced settlements with regulatory agencies in the United States and abroad, including the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), today’s resolutions bring the total fines and penalties paid by these five banks for their conduct in the FX spot market to nearly $9 billion.
This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. This prosecution is being handled by the Antitrust Division’s New York Office and other criminal enforcement sections and the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The Justice Department appreciates the substantial assistance provided by the CFTC, OCC, FINMA, FCA, Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Reserve Bank, the U.K. Serious Fraud Office and the New York State Department of Financial Services. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Connecticut have also provided assistance in this matter.
U.S. CONGRATULATES PEOPLE OF CAMEROON ON THEIR NATIONAL DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Cameroon National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
May 20, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Cameroon as you celebrate your national day on May 20.
Since independence, Cameroonians have sought to build a stable, prosperous, and democratic society. The people of the United States welcome your nation’s efforts to achieve this goal.
U.S. investment in Cameroon continues to rise, create jobs, improve infrastructure, and contribute to economic diversification. As you prepare to celebrate 43 years of unity, we will continue to increase investment and reduce barriers to trade.
We are also working together to bolster regional stability. The people of Cameroon are on the front lines in the courageous fight against Boko Haram. We are both helping to stabilize the Central African Republic. The United States provides equipment and training to your troops deployed there as peacekeepers. And we continue to protect endangered species, reduce the impact of climate change, curb wildlife trafficking, and improve maritime security.
On this special occasion, I wish peace and prosperity for all Cameroonians in the year ahead.
Cameroon National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
May 20, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Cameroon as you celebrate your national day on May 20.
Since independence, Cameroonians have sought to build a stable, prosperous, and democratic society. The people of the United States welcome your nation’s efforts to achieve this goal.
U.S. investment in Cameroon continues to rise, create jobs, improve infrastructure, and contribute to economic diversification. As you prepare to celebrate 43 years of unity, we will continue to increase investment and reduce barriers to trade.
We are also working together to bolster regional stability. The people of Cameroon are on the front lines in the courageous fight against Boko Haram. We are both helping to stabilize the Central African Republic. The United States provides equipment and training to your troops deployed there as peacekeepers. And we continue to protect endangered species, reduce the impact of climate change, curb wildlife trafficking, and improve maritime security.
On this special occasion, I wish peace and prosperity for all Cameroonians in the year ahead.
4 CANCER CHARITIES CHARGED IN ALLEGED $187 MILLION FRAUD SCHEME
FROM: U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC, All 50 States and D.C. Charge Four Cancer Charities With Bilking Over $187 Million from Consumers
Complaint Alleges Defendants Falsely Claimed Donations Would Help Pay For Pain Medication, Hospice Care & Other Services; But Spent Donations on Cars, Trips, Sports Tickets, & Professional Fundraisers
May 19, 2015
The Federal Trade Commission and 58 law enforcement partners from every state and the District of Columbia have charged four sham cancer charities and their operators with bilking more than $187 million from consumers. The defendants told donors their money would help cancer patients, including children and women suffering from breast cancer, but the overwhelming majority of donations benefitted only the perpetrators, their families and friends, and fundraisers. This is one of the largest actions brought to date by enforcers against charity fraud.
Named in the federal court complaint are Cancer Fund of America, Inc. (CFA), Cancer Support Services Inc. (CSS), their president, James Reynolds, Sr., and their chief financial officer and CSS’s former president, Kyle Effler; Children’s Cancer Fund of America Inc. (CCFOA) and its president and executive director, Rose Perkins; and The Breast Cancer Society Inc. (BCS) and its executive director and former president, James Reynolds II.
CCFOA and Perkins, BCS, Reynolds II and Effler have agreed to settle the charges against them. Under the proposed settlement orders, Effler, Perkins and Reynolds II will be banned from fundraising, charity management, and oversight of charitable assets, and CCFOA and BCS will be dissolved. Litigation will continue against CFA, CSS and James Reynolds Sr.
“Cancer is a debilitating disease that impacts millions of Americans and their families every year. The defendants’ egregious scheme effectively deprived legitimate cancer charities and cancer patients of much-needed funds and support,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “The defendants took in millions of dollars in donations meant to help cancer patients, but spent it on themselves and their fundraisers. I’m pleased that the FTC and our state partners are acting to end this appalling scheme.”
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said, “The allegations of fundraising for personal gain in the name of children with cancer and women battling breast cancer are simply shameful. This is the first time the FTC, all 50 states, and the District of Columbia have filed a joint enforcement action alleging deceptive solicitations by charities and I hope it serves as a strong warning for anyone trying to exploit the kindness and generosity of others.”
South Carolina Secretary of State Mark Hammond said, “When charities lie to donors, it is our duty to step in to protect them. At the same time, however, this historic action should remind everyone to be vigilant when giving to charity. This case is an unfortunate example of why I always tell my constituents to give from the heart, but give smart.”
According to the complaint, the defendants used telemarketing calls, direct mail, websites, and materials distributed by the Combined Federal Campaign, which raises money from federal employees for non-profit organizations, to portray themselves as legitimate charities with substantial programs that provided direct support to cancer patients in the United States, such as providing patients with pain medication, transportation to chemotherapy, and hospice care. In fact, the complaint alleges that these claims were deceptive and that the charities “operated as personal fiefdoms characterized by rampant nepotism, flagrant conflicts of interest, and excessive insider compensation, with none of the financial and governance controls that any bona fide charity would have adopted.”
According to the complaint, the defendants used the organizations for lucrative employment for family members and friends, and spent consumer donations on cars, trips, luxury cruises, college tuition, gym memberships, jet ski outings, sporting event and concert tickets, and dating site memberships. They hired professional fundraisers who often received 85 percent or more of every donation.
The complaint alleges that, to hide their high administrative and fundraising costs from donors and regulators, the defendants falsely inflated their revenues by reporting in publicly filed financial documents more than $223 million in donated “gifts in kind” which they claimed to distribute to international recipients. In fact, the defendants were merely pass-through agents for such goods. By reporting the inflated “gift in kind” donations, the defendants created the illusion that they were larger and more efficient with donors’ dollars than they actually were. Thirty-five states alleged that the defendants filed false and misleading financial statements with state charities regulators.
In addition, the FTC and 36 states charged CFA, CCFOA and BCS with providing professional fundraisers with deceptive fundraising materials. The FTC and the attorneys general also charged the defendants with violating the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), CFA, CCFOA and BCS with assisting and facilitating in TSR violations, and CSS with making deceptive charitable solicitations.
In addition to the bans imposed on charity work by the settling individual defendants and the dissolution of two corporations, CCFOA and BCS, the proposed final order against CCFOA and Rose Perkins imposes a judgment of $30,079,821, the amount consumers donated between 2008 and 2012. The judgment against CCFOA will be partially satisfied via liquidation of its assets; the judgment against Perkins will be suspended based upon her inability to pay.
The proposed final orders against BCS and Reynolds II impose a $65,564,360 judgment, the amount consumers donated between 2008 and 2012. The BCS order provides an option, subject to court approval, for spinning off its Hope Supply Warehouses program to a legitimate, qualified charity. BCS’s remaining assets will be liquidated and used to partially satisfy the judgment. The judgment against Reynolds II will be suspended when he pays $75,000.
The proposed final order against Effler will impose a judgment of $41,152,231, the amount consumers donated to CSS between 2008 and 2012. The judgment will be suspended upon payment of $60,000. The full judgment amounts against the individuals will become due immediately if they are found to have misrepresented their financial condition.
The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint and proposed stipulated final orders was 5-0. The documents were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. The proposed orders are subject to court approval.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. Stipulated orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.
Before giving to a charity, read the FTC’s Charity Scams.
FTC, All 50 States and D.C. Charge Four Cancer Charities With Bilking Over $187 Million from Consumers
Complaint Alleges Defendants Falsely Claimed Donations Would Help Pay For Pain Medication, Hospice Care & Other Services; But Spent Donations on Cars, Trips, Sports Tickets, & Professional Fundraisers
May 19, 2015
The Federal Trade Commission and 58 law enforcement partners from every state and the District of Columbia have charged four sham cancer charities and their operators with bilking more than $187 million from consumers. The defendants told donors their money would help cancer patients, including children and women suffering from breast cancer, but the overwhelming majority of donations benefitted only the perpetrators, their families and friends, and fundraisers. This is one of the largest actions brought to date by enforcers against charity fraud.
Named in the federal court complaint are Cancer Fund of America, Inc. (CFA), Cancer Support Services Inc. (CSS), their president, James Reynolds, Sr., and their chief financial officer and CSS’s former president, Kyle Effler; Children’s Cancer Fund of America Inc. (CCFOA) and its president and executive director, Rose Perkins; and The Breast Cancer Society Inc. (BCS) and its executive director and former president, James Reynolds II.
CCFOA and Perkins, BCS, Reynolds II and Effler have agreed to settle the charges against them. Under the proposed settlement orders, Effler, Perkins and Reynolds II will be banned from fundraising, charity management, and oversight of charitable assets, and CCFOA and BCS will be dissolved. Litigation will continue against CFA, CSS and James Reynolds Sr.
“Cancer is a debilitating disease that impacts millions of Americans and their families every year. The defendants’ egregious scheme effectively deprived legitimate cancer charities and cancer patients of much-needed funds and support,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “The defendants took in millions of dollars in donations meant to help cancer patients, but spent it on themselves and their fundraisers. I’m pleased that the FTC and our state partners are acting to end this appalling scheme.”
Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said, “The allegations of fundraising for personal gain in the name of children with cancer and women battling breast cancer are simply shameful. This is the first time the FTC, all 50 states, and the District of Columbia have filed a joint enforcement action alleging deceptive solicitations by charities and I hope it serves as a strong warning for anyone trying to exploit the kindness and generosity of others.”
South Carolina Secretary of State Mark Hammond said, “When charities lie to donors, it is our duty to step in to protect them. At the same time, however, this historic action should remind everyone to be vigilant when giving to charity. This case is an unfortunate example of why I always tell my constituents to give from the heart, but give smart.”
According to the complaint, the defendants used telemarketing calls, direct mail, websites, and materials distributed by the Combined Federal Campaign, which raises money from federal employees for non-profit organizations, to portray themselves as legitimate charities with substantial programs that provided direct support to cancer patients in the United States, such as providing patients with pain medication, transportation to chemotherapy, and hospice care. In fact, the complaint alleges that these claims were deceptive and that the charities “operated as personal fiefdoms characterized by rampant nepotism, flagrant conflicts of interest, and excessive insider compensation, with none of the financial and governance controls that any bona fide charity would have adopted.”
According to the complaint, the defendants used the organizations for lucrative employment for family members and friends, and spent consumer donations on cars, trips, luxury cruises, college tuition, gym memberships, jet ski outings, sporting event and concert tickets, and dating site memberships. They hired professional fundraisers who often received 85 percent or more of every donation.
The complaint alleges that, to hide their high administrative and fundraising costs from donors and regulators, the defendants falsely inflated their revenues by reporting in publicly filed financial documents more than $223 million in donated “gifts in kind” which they claimed to distribute to international recipients. In fact, the defendants were merely pass-through agents for such goods. By reporting the inflated “gift in kind” donations, the defendants created the illusion that they were larger and more efficient with donors’ dollars than they actually were. Thirty-five states alleged that the defendants filed false and misleading financial statements with state charities regulators.
In addition, the FTC and 36 states charged CFA, CCFOA and BCS with providing professional fundraisers with deceptive fundraising materials. The FTC and the attorneys general also charged the defendants with violating the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), CFA, CCFOA and BCS with assisting and facilitating in TSR violations, and CSS with making deceptive charitable solicitations.
In addition to the bans imposed on charity work by the settling individual defendants and the dissolution of two corporations, CCFOA and BCS, the proposed final order against CCFOA and Rose Perkins imposes a judgment of $30,079,821, the amount consumers donated between 2008 and 2012. The judgment against CCFOA will be partially satisfied via liquidation of its assets; the judgment against Perkins will be suspended based upon her inability to pay.
The proposed final orders against BCS and Reynolds II impose a $65,564,360 judgment, the amount consumers donated between 2008 and 2012. The BCS order provides an option, subject to court approval, for spinning off its Hope Supply Warehouses program to a legitimate, qualified charity. BCS’s remaining assets will be liquidated and used to partially satisfy the judgment. The judgment against Reynolds II will be suspended when he pays $75,000.
The proposed final order against Effler will impose a judgment of $41,152,231, the amount consumers donated to CSS between 2008 and 2012. The judgment will be suspended upon payment of $60,000. The full judgment amounts against the individuals will become due immediately if they are found to have misrepresented their financial condition.
The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint and proposed stipulated final orders was 5-0. The documents were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. The proposed orders are subject to court approval.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. Stipulated orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.
Before giving to a charity, read the FTC’s Charity Scams.
FTC ASKS BANKRUPTCY COURT TO PROTECT PERSONAL INFORMATION OF RADIOSHACK CONSUMERS
FROM: U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Requests Bankruptcy Court Take Steps to Protect RadioShack Consumers’ Personal Information
Letter to Consumer Privacy Ombudsman Describes Possible Conditions on Sale of Data
In a letter to the court-appointed consumer privacy ombudsman in the bankruptcy case of the electronics retailer RadioShack, Federal Trade Commission Consumer Protection Director Jessica Rich recommended conditions the court could place on the sale of consumers’ personal information to protect their privacy.
According to the letter, substantial amounts of personal data collected by RadioShack, including consumers’ names, addresses, e-mail addresses, and purchase histories, are among the assets being put up for auction to settle the bankruptcy. Documents indicate information from tens of millions of consumers may be among the assets for sale.
In the letter, Rich points to the extensive privacy promises that RadioShack made to consumers both online and in its stores – including promises not to sell consumers’ information or the company’s mailing lists. She notes the FTC’s previous intervention in the bankruptcy of online retailer Toysmart, which sought to sell its customers’ personal information, counter to the promises the company made in its privacy policies.
In the Toysmart case, a settlement with the company placed a number of conditions on the sale of the data that allowed the company to divest the assets while protecting consumers’ information from being used in ways they did not anticipate. Rich’s letter recommends similar conditions be applied to the sale of RadioShack customer information.
Among the conditions recommended in the letter are that consumers’ information not be sold as a standalone asset, but be bundled with other assets. The letter recommends that consumer information be sold only to another entity that is in substantially the same line of business as RadioShack, that the buyer agree to be bound by the RadioShack privacy policies that were in place when the consumers’ data was collected, and that the buyer provide consumers with notice and obtain their affirmative consent before using data in a way that is materially different from the promises RadioShack made to consumers.
Rich asked that the ombudsman include the letter in her report to the bankruptcy court.
FTC Requests Bankruptcy Court Take Steps to Protect RadioShack Consumers’ Personal Information
Letter to Consumer Privacy Ombudsman Describes Possible Conditions on Sale of Data
In a letter to the court-appointed consumer privacy ombudsman in the bankruptcy case of the electronics retailer RadioShack, Federal Trade Commission Consumer Protection Director Jessica Rich recommended conditions the court could place on the sale of consumers’ personal information to protect their privacy.
According to the letter, substantial amounts of personal data collected by RadioShack, including consumers’ names, addresses, e-mail addresses, and purchase histories, are among the assets being put up for auction to settle the bankruptcy. Documents indicate information from tens of millions of consumers may be among the assets for sale.
In the letter, Rich points to the extensive privacy promises that RadioShack made to consumers both online and in its stores – including promises not to sell consumers’ information or the company’s mailing lists. She notes the FTC’s previous intervention in the bankruptcy of online retailer Toysmart, which sought to sell its customers’ personal information, counter to the promises the company made in its privacy policies.
In the Toysmart case, a settlement with the company placed a number of conditions on the sale of the data that allowed the company to divest the assets while protecting consumers’ information from being used in ways they did not anticipate. Rich’s letter recommends similar conditions be applied to the sale of RadioShack customer information.
Among the conditions recommended in the letter are that consumers’ information not be sold as a standalone asset, but be bundled with other assets. The letter recommends that consumer information be sold only to another entity that is in substantially the same line of business as RadioShack, that the buyer agree to be bound by the RadioShack privacy policies that were in place when the consumers’ data was collected, and that the buyer provide consumers with notice and obtain their affirmative consent before using data in a way that is materially different from the promises RadioShack made to consumers.
Rich asked that the ombudsman include the letter in her report to the bankruptcy court.
WHITE HOUSE FACT SHEET ON CREATING OPPORTUNITY THROUGH STRONGER, SAFER COMMUNITIES
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
May 18, 2015
FACT SHEET: Creating Opportunity for All Through Stronger, Safer Communities
President Obama believes that in America everyone should be empowered by the country they call home, not limited by the zip code into which they are born. That’s why the President’s agenda is focused on expanding opportunity for all: restoring economic security to hard-hit American families; building stronger neighborhoods and communities; and ensuring young people have the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Today, in Camden, New Jersey, the President will highlight innovative steps taken by a city that has struggled with one of the nation's highest violent crime rates to create economic opportunity, help police do their jobs more safely, and reduce crime in the process. Changes include increasing the number of police officer boots on the ground and changing the way their officers interact with the community. The Camden County Police Department has instituted a community policing initiative, and just last month, the city accepted the My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge and was separately designated as a Promise Zone, representing the culmination of five years of collaborative efforts aimed at improving the quality of life for Camden children, youth, and families.
The President will also highlight how communities are adopting the recommendations of the Task Force on 21st Century Policing and will highlight new tools all cities can utilize to build and maintain the all-important trust between the law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day, and the communities they have sworn to serve and protect. These tools include:
A Blueprint for Improved Community Policing: The final Task Force Report provides a blue print for cities and towns to utilize as they develop policing strategies that work best for building trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve while enhancing public safety.
The White House Police Data Initiative: Leading jurisdictions have joined technologists, community organizations and police associations to commit to use data and technology in ways that build community trust and reduce unnecessary uses of force.
Community Policing Grants: The Department of Justice (DOJ) will begin taking applications for grants designed to advance the practice of community policing in law enforcement agencies through hiring, training and technical assistance, the development of innovative community policing strategies, applied research, guidebooks, and best practices that are national in scope.
A Body-Worn Camera Tool Kit: Earlier this month, the DOJ announced a new pilot grant program that will help local law enforcement agencies develop, implement, and evaluate body-worn camera programs, and today, DOJ is releasing an online clearinghouse of resources designed to help law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve plan and implement body-worn camera (BWC) programs.
Partnerships with National Law Enforcement Focused Organizations to Implement Recommendations: With support from the Department of Justice, nine law enforcement-focused organizations will develop national-level, industry-wide projects for several of the pillars outlined in the Task Force Report.
Equipment Working Group Final Report: A federal interagency working group—led by the Departments of Justice, Defense, and Homeland Security – has now completed an extensive review of federal programs that support the acquisition of equipment by state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. On the basis of that review, the working group developed a series of concrete steps to enhance accountability, increase transparency, and better serve the needs of law enforcement and local communities.
In addition, over the next few weeks, members of the President’s Cabinet will be traveling across the country to lift up best practices and highlight other cities where local leaders are partnering with federal agencies, foundations, private sector partners, and police departments to improve the quality of life in their communities on issues from healthcare to education to transparency in policing. Secretary Castro will visit Fullerton, CA, Kansas City, and St. Louis; Secretary Duncan will travel to Philadelphia; Secretary Foxx will travel to Charlotte; Secretary Perez will travel to Minneapolis, New Haven, and Pittsburgh; and Secretary Vilsack will travel to Memphis.
Additionally, Attorney General Lynch will travel to Cincinnati as part of a national Community Policing tour that will highlight collaborative programs and innovative policing practices designed to advance public safety, strengthen police-community relations, and foster mutual trust and respect. The tour will build on President Obama’s commitment to engage with law enforcement, local leaders, young people and other members of the community to implement key recommendations from the 21st Century Policing Task Force report.
The administration is deeply engaged with these communities and others across the country, showing what can be achieved when people from all walks of life come together to expand opportunity for all Americans.
The Task Force on 21st Century Policing
Last December, President Barack Obama created the Task Force on 21st Century Policing with a mission to identify best practices and make recommendations on how such practices can promote effective crime reduction while building public trust. The Task Force was chaired by Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey and George Mason University Professor Laurie Robinson and included, among others, law enforcement representatives, community leaders, academics, and youth leaders. Over several months, the Task Force held public hearings across the country; took testimony from over 100 witnesses; reviewed hundreds of written submissions and thoughtfully came to consensus on 59 concrete recommendations. The Task Force presented their interim report, including recommendations regarding policies, training, transparency, accountability, technology and officer safety and wellness, to the President in March, and today the final report is available HERE.
White House Police Data Initiative: Using Data and Technology to Build Community Trust
The Task Force Report emphasized the importance of data and technology in helping local law enforcement agencies excel in their work and build community trust. Even when local law enforcement agencies are willing to explore new ways to use and release such data, there are often technical and other impediments to doing so. To break down barriers, the White House, with assistance from foundations like the Laura & John Arnold Foundation, launched the Police Data Initiative (PDI) with police chiefs and municipal Chief Technology Officers from sixteen jurisdictions that we expect to be leaders in this space. Since the launch, five additional jurisdictions joined the effort. As part of the initiative, these jurisdictions are working alongside technologists, community organizations and police associations to implement multiple commitments to action that leverage open data to increase transparency and build community trust, better utilize early warning systems to identify problems, increase internal accountability, and decrease inappropriate uses of force. More information about the White House Police Data Initiative is available HERE.
Jurisdictions taking part in the White House Police Data Initiative (PDI) so far include: Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Camden, NJ; Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC; Cincinnati, OH; Columbia, SC; Dallas, TX; Hampton, VA; Indianapolis, IN; Knoxville, TN; Los Angeles, CA; LA County, CA; Louisville, KY; Montgomery County, MD; New Orleans, LA; Newport News, VA; Oakland, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Richmond, CA; Rutland, VT; and Seattle, WA.
Below are some highlights of the work these police departments are taking with other PDI participants:
Open Data to Build Transparency and Increase Community Trust
Twenty-one jurisdictions committed to release a combined total of 101 data sets that have not been released to the public. The types of data include uses of force, police pedestrian and vehicle stops, citations, officer involved shootings and more, helping the communities gain visibility into key information on police/citizen encounters.
Code for America and CI Technologies will work together to build an open source software tool to make it easier for more than 500 U.S. law enforcement agencies using IA Pro police integrity software to extract and open up data.
To make police open data easy to find and use, the Police Foundation and ESRI will build a non-exclusive police open data portal to serve as a central clearinghouse option for police open data, making it easily accessible to community groups and researchers to analyze and see trends.
To help this newly released data come alive for communities through mapping, visualizations and other tools, city leaders, non-profit organizations, and private sector partners will host open data hackathons in cities around the country.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is working with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice to use open data to provide a full picture of key policing activities, including stops, searches and use-of-force trends, information and demographics on neighborhoods patrolled, and more. This partnership will build on a website and tools already developed by the Southern Coalition for Justice which provide visualization and search tools to make this data easily accessible and understandable.
Presidential Innovation Fellows, through the U.S. CTO and U.S. Chief Data Scientist will release an Open Data Playbook that police departments can use as a reference for open data best practices and case studies.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Foundation, and Code for America have committed to help grow communities of practice for law enforcement agencies and technologists around open data and transparency around police/community interactions.
Early Warning Systems and Data Research
While many police departments have systems in place, often called “early warning systems”, to identify officers who may be having challenges in their interactions with the public and link them with training, there has been little research to determine which indicators are most closely linked to bad outcomes. To tackle this issue, twelve police departments have committed to share data on police/citizen encounters with data scientists for in-depth data analysis, strengthening the ability of police to intervene early and effectively: Austin, TX; Camden, NJ; Charlotte, NC; Dallas, TX; Indianapolis, IN; Knoxville, TN; LA City; LA County; Louisville, KY; New Orleans, LA; Philadelphia, PA and Richmond, CA.
The University of Chicago will provide a team of five data science fellows from the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Data Science for Social Good program to work with 3-4 police departments over a 14 week engagement, starting in late May to begin to prototype data analysis tools that will help police departments identify the behaviors most indicative of later problems.
Today in Camden, NJ, the city will welcome a Police Data Initiative Tech Team. This volunteer team of technology experts and data scientists will spend two days with Camden PD. They will focus on key technology systems with a goal of helping the Camden police enhance analysis and gain greater insights on officer activity. The goal is for the Camden PD to begin developing the solutions that surface potential problems before they happen while pointing to best practices that other departments can follow.
Body-Worn Camera Initiative: Identifying Most Effective Practices for Body-Worn Camera Use
The Task Force recommended steps the federal government could take to encourage adoption of body-worn cameras (BWC), while also noting that such cameras pose privacy and implementation challenges. Earlier this month, DOJ announced a $20 million Body-Worn Camera Pilot Partnership Program designed to respond to the immediate needs of local and tribal law enforcement organizations. Today, DOJ’s Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance launched the National Body-Worn Camera Toolkit, an online clearinghouse of resources designed to help law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve plan and implement BWC programs. The toolkit consolidates and translates research, promising practices, templates and tools that have been developed by subject matter experts. Areas of focus include procurement; training; implementation; retention and policies along with interests of prosecutors, defense attorneys, victim and privacy advocates and community members.
Community Policing Grants: Helping Communities Implement Innovative Policing Strategies
The Task Force recommended that DOJ, through the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) provide incentives for state and local law enforcement to adopt the recommendations. Today, the COPS office will launch solicitations for grants and technical assistance that are closely aligned with the recommendations. Funding is available for local law enforcement agencies committed to implementing the recommendations and to adopting policies that build community trust, including through hiring, training, initiating pilot projects, and developing new guidance and best practices. Grants will be awarded this fall. For further information about how the COPS office is supporting for implementation of the Task Force recommendations click HERE.
Partnering with National Law Enforcement Organizations to Implement Recommendations
With support from the COPS Office, law enforcement focused organizations including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Police Executive Research Forum, the National Sheriffs’ Association, Major County Sheriffs, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Police Foundation, will develop national-level, industry-wide projects for several of the pillars outlined in the Task Force Report. Supported activities will range from the creation of positive and meaningful engagement opportunities between law enforcement and youth, identification of best practices for engaging the community in the mutual responsibility of public safety, exploration of the circumstances and causality behind documented line-of-duty injuries, and promotion of officer safety and well-being.
The Major Cities Chiefs Association will also be partnering with the COPS Office to host three roundtable convenings of member chiefs to discuss the implementation of selected recommendations from the Task Force Report. The discussions will explore experiences and lessons from agencies that may have implemented some of the recommendations, including associated challenges, and the role of senior leaders making the changes called for in the Task Force Report. Key ideas from the discussion will be captured and shared with the field through a report on the discussions. The first roundtable will take place in Nashville, Tennessee in June.
In addition, the International Association of Chiefs of Police has committed to building a National Center for Community-Police Relations (NCCPR) which will provide support to any local law enforcement agencies that wish to address the issues raised in the Task Force Report. Support will include: providing educational materials that will break down the Task Force recommendations for all levels of officer; on-site culture assessments to determine the strengths and weaknesses of local agencies relating to the report’s six pillars; using the train-the-trainer model to create a national cadre of local agency officers who can train others on recommendation implementation; and leader-to-leader mentoring to allow leaders who have successfully implemented recommendations to work with those desiring to do so.
Helping Police Get People Needed Services
Since 2011, the Ford Foundation, with other foundations, has supported Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) in Seattle, an innovative arrest diversion program co-designed by police, prosecutors, public defenders, civil rights leaders and public health experts. This evidence-based program lets law enforcement officers directly divert people, whom they could arrest for low-level crimes, such as drug or prostitution offenses, to case managers, who assist with housing, treatment and other supportive services, instead of using jail and prosecution. An evaluation by the University of Washington, funded by the Arnold Foundation and released in March 2015, found that participants in the program had 58% lower odds of a subsequent arrest as compared to a control group. Equally important, it helps improve the relationship between the police and the people they encounter on the streets. Consistent with the Task Force recommendation that law enforcement agencies “emphasize . . . alternatives to arrest or summons in situations where appropriate,” the Ford Foundation plans to work with other foundations to provide technical assistance to jurisdictions around the country planning to implement LEAD. Over 30 jurisdictions nationally have expressed interest and will be invited to a convening to be hosted by The White House and the Ford Foundation in July.
Equipment Working Group Final Report
In addition to the work completed by the Task Force on 21st Century Policing, a separate federal interagency working group—led by the Departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security – has now completed an extensive review of federal programs that support the transfer of equipment to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. On the basis of that review, the working group developed a series of concrete steps to enhance accountability, increase transparency, and better serve the needs of law enforcement and local communities. The President has directed departments and agencies to put the working group’s recommendations into practice and continue to partner with law enforcement and local communities during the implementation process. The working group report is available HERE.
The working group developed a unified list of prohibited equipment that may not be acquired under any of the various programs. This list includes tracked armored vehicles, weaponized aircraft and vehicles, bayonets, grenade launchers, and large-caliber firearms.
The working group developed a unified list of equipment that law enforcement may acquire only in accordance with new and more rigorous controls. This controlled list includes armored vehicles, tactical vehicles, riot gear, and specialized firearms and ammunition.
Uniform Acquisition Standards: Across all programs, the transfer of equipment on the controlled list will require the consent of the appropriate local civilian governing body (e.g., City Council, County Council, Mayor) as well as a clear and persuasive explanation of the need for the equipment and the appropriate law enforcement purpose that it will serve.
Training and Protocols: To receive such equipment, law enforcement agencies must commit to have in place “general policing” training standards, including training on community policing, constitutional policing, and community impact. Agencies must also agree to protocols on the appropriate use, supervision, and operation of such equipment.
Required Data Collection: Law enforcement agencies must collect and retain certain information whenever such equipment is involved in a “significant incident.” Upon request or during a compliance review, the law enforcement agency must provide this information to the federal agency that supported the equipment’s acquisition. This information will also be made publicly available in accordance with the law enforcement agency's applicable policies and protocols.
May 18, 2015
FACT SHEET: Creating Opportunity for All Through Stronger, Safer Communities
President Obama believes that in America everyone should be empowered by the country they call home, not limited by the zip code into which they are born. That’s why the President’s agenda is focused on expanding opportunity for all: restoring economic security to hard-hit American families; building stronger neighborhoods and communities; and ensuring young people have the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Today, in Camden, New Jersey, the President will highlight innovative steps taken by a city that has struggled with one of the nation's highest violent crime rates to create economic opportunity, help police do their jobs more safely, and reduce crime in the process. Changes include increasing the number of police officer boots on the ground and changing the way their officers interact with the community. The Camden County Police Department has instituted a community policing initiative, and just last month, the city accepted the My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge and was separately designated as a Promise Zone, representing the culmination of five years of collaborative efforts aimed at improving the quality of life for Camden children, youth, and families.
The President will also highlight how communities are adopting the recommendations of the Task Force on 21st Century Policing and will highlight new tools all cities can utilize to build and maintain the all-important trust between the law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day, and the communities they have sworn to serve and protect. These tools include:
A Blueprint for Improved Community Policing: The final Task Force Report provides a blue print for cities and towns to utilize as they develop policing strategies that work best for building trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve while enhancing public safety.
The White House Police Data Initiative: Leading jurisdictions have joined technologists, community organizations and police associations to commit to use data and technology in ways that build community trust and reduce unnecessary uses of force.
Community Policing Grants: The Department of Justice (DOJ) will begin taking applications for grants designed to advance the practice of community policing in law enforcement agencies through hiring, training and technical assistance, the development of innovative community policing strategies, applied research, guidebooks, and best practices that are national in scope.
A Body-Worn Camera Tool Kit: Earlier this month, the DOJ announced a new pilot grant program that will help local law enforcement agencies develop, implement, and evaluate body-worn camera programs, and today, DOJ is releasing an online clearinghouse of resources designed to help law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve plan and implement body-worn camera (BWC) programs.
Partnerships with National Law Enforcement Focused Organizations to Implement Recommendations: With support from the Department of Justice, nine law enforcement-focused organizations will develop national-level, industry-wide projects for several of the pillars outlined in the Task Force Report.
Equipment Working Group Final Report: A federal interagency working group—led by the Departments of Justice, Defense, and Homeland Security – has now completed an extensive review of federal programs that support the acquisition of equipment by state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. On the basis of that review, the working group developed a series of concrete steps to enhance accountability, increase transparency, and better serve the needs of law enforcement and local communities.
In addition, over the next few weeks, members of the President’s Cabinet will be traveling across the country to lift up best practices and highlight other cities where local leaders are partnering with federal agencies, foundations, private sector partners, and police departments to improve the quality of life in their communities on issues from healthcare to education to transparency in policing. Secretary Castro will visit Fullerton, CA, Kansas City, and St. Louis; Secretary Duncan will travel to Philadelphia; Secretary Foxx will travel to Charlotte; Secretary Perez will travel to Minneapolis, New Haven, and Pittsburgh; and Secretary Vilsack will travel to Memphis.
Additionally, Attorney General Lynch will travel to Cincinnati as part of a national Community Policing tour that will highlight collaborative programs and innovative policing practices designed to advance public safety, strengthen police-community relations, and foster mutual trust and respect. The tour will build on President Obama’s commitment to engage with law enforcement, local leaders, young people and other members of the community to implement key recommendations from the 21st Century Policing Task Force report.
The administration is deeply engaged with these communities and others across the country, showing what can be achieved when people from all walks of life come together to expand opportunity for all Americans.
The Task Force on 21st Century Policing
Last December, President Barack Obama created the Task Force on 21st Century Policing with a mission to identify best practices and make recommendations on how such practices can promote effective crime reduction while building public trust. The Task Force was chaired by Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey and George Mason University Professor Laurie Robinson and included, among others, law enforcement representatives, community leaders, academics, and youth leaders. Over several months, the Task Force held public hearings across the country; took testimony from over 100 witnesses; reviewed hundreds of written submissions and thoughtfully came to consensus on 59 concrete recommendations. The Task Force presented their interim report, including recommendations regarding policies, training, transparency, accountability, technology and officer safety and wellness, to the President in March, and today the final report is available HERE.
White House Police Data Initiative: Using Data and Technology to Build Community Trust
The Task Force Report emphasized the importance of data and technology in helping local law enforcement agencies excel in their work and build community trust. Even when local law enforcement agencies are willing to explore new ways to use and release such data, there are often technical and other impediments to doing so. To break down barriers, the White House, with assistance from foundations like the Laura & John Arnold Foundation, launched the Police Data Initiative (PDI) with police chiefs and municipal Chief Technology Officers from sixteen jurisdictions that we expect to be leaders in this space. Since the launch, five additional jurisdictions joined the effort. As part of the initiative, these jurisdictions are working alongside technologists, community organizations and police associations to implement multiple commitments to action that leverage open data to increase transparency and build community trust, better utilize early warning systems to identify problems, increase internal accountability, and decrease inappropriate uses of force. More information about the White House Police Data Initiative is available HERE.
Jurisdictions taking part in the White House Police Data Initiative (PDI) so far include: Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Camden, NJ; Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC; Cincinnati, OH; Columbia, SC; Dallas, TX; Hampton, VA; Indianapolis, IN; Knoxville, TN; Los Angeles, CA; LA County, CA; Louisville, KY; Montgomery County, MD; New Orleans, LA; Newport News, VA; Oakland, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Richmond, CA; Rutland, VT; and Seattle, WA.
Below are some highlights of the work these police departments are taking with other PDI participants:
Open Data to Build Transparency and Increase Community Trust
Twenty-one jurisdictions committed to release a combined total of 101 data sets that have not been released to the public. The types of data include uses of force, police pedestrian and vehicle stops, citations, officer involved shootings and more, helping the communities gain visibility into key information on police/citizen encounters.
Code for America and CI Technologies will work together to build an open source software tool to make it easier for more than 500 U.S. law enforcement agencies using IA Pro police integrity software to extract and open up data.
To make police open data easy to find and use, the Police Foundation and ESRI will build a non-exclusive police open data portal to serve as a central clearinghouse option for police open data, making it easily accessible to community groups and researchers to analyze and see trends.
To help this newly released data come alive for communities through mapping, visualizations and other tools, city leaders, non-profit organizations, and private sector partners will host open data hackathons in cities around the country.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is working with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice to use open data to provide a full picture of key policing activities, including stops, searches and use-of-force trends, information and demographics on neighborhoods patrolled, and more. This partnership will build on a website and tools already developed by the Southern Coalition for Justice which provide visualization and search tools to make this data easily accessible and understandable.
Presidential Innovation Fellows, through the U.S. CTO and U.S. Chief Data Scientist will release an Open Data Playbook that police departments can use as a reference for open data best practices and case studies.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Foundation, and Code for America have committed to help grow communities of practice for law enforcement agencies and technologists around open data and transparency around police/community interactions.
Early Warning Systems and Data Research
While many police departments have systems in place, often called “early warning systems”, to identify officers who may be having challenges in their interactions with the public and link them with training, there has been little research to determine which indicators are most closely linked to bad outcomes. To tackle this issue, twelve police departments have committed to share data on police/citizen encounters with data scientists for in-depth data analysis, strengthening the ability of police to intervene early and effectively: Austin, TX; Camden, NJ; Charlotte, NC; Dallas, TX; Indianapolis, IN; Knoxville, TN; LA City; LA County; Louisville, KY; New Orleans, LA; Philadelphia, PA and Richmond, CA.
The University of Chicago will provide a team of five data science fellows from the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Data Science for Social Good program to work with 3-4 police departments over a 14 week engagement, starting in late May to begin to prototype data analysis tools that will help police departments identify the behaviors most indicative of later problems.
Today in Camden, NJ, the city will welcome a Police Data Initiative Tech Team. This volunteer team of technology experts and data scientists will spend two days with Camden PD. They will focus on key technology systems with a goal of helping the Camden police enhance analysis and gain greater insights on officer activity. The goal is for the Camden PD to begin developing the solutions that surface potential problems before they happen while pointing to best practices that other departments can follow.
Body-Worn Camera Initiative: Identifying Most Effective Practices for Body-Worn Camera Use
The Task Force recommended steps the federal government could take to encourage adoption of body-worn cameras (BWC), while also noting that such cameras pose privacy and implementation challenges. Earlier this month, DOJ announced a $20 million Body-Worn Camera Pilot Partnership Program designed to respond to the immediate needs of local and tribal law enforcement organizations. Today, DOJ’s Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance launched the National Body-Worn Camera Toolkit, an online clearinghouse of resources designed to help law enforcement professionals and the communities they serve plan and implement BWC programs. The toolkit consolidates and translates research, promising practices, templates and tools that have been developed by subject matter experts. Areas of focus include procurement; training; implementation; retention and policies along with interests of prosecutors, defense attorneys, victim and privacy advocates and community members.
Community Policing Grants: Helping Communities Implement Innovative Policing Strategies
The Task Force recommended that DOJ, through the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) provide incentives for state and local law enforcement to adopt the recommendations. Today, the COPS office will launch solicitations for grants and technical assistance that are closely aligned with the recommendations. Funding is available for local law enforcement agencies committed to implementing the recommendations and to adopting policies that build community trust, including through hiring, training, initiating pilot projects, and developing new guidance and best practices. Grants will be awarded this fall. For further information about how the COPS office is supporting for implementation of the Task Force recommendations click HERE.
Partnering with National Law Enforcement Organizations to Implement Recommendations
With support from the COPS Office, law enforcement focused organizations including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Police Executive Research Forum, the National Sheriffs’ Association, Major County Sheriffs, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Police Foundation, will develop national-level, industry-wide projects for several of the pillars outlined in the Task Force Report. Supported activities will range from the creation of positive and meaningful engagement opportunities between law enforcement and youth, identification of best practices for engaging the community in the mutual responsibility of public safety, exploration of the circumstances and causality behind documented line-of-duty injuries, and promotion of officer safety and well-being.
The Major Cities Chiefs Association will also be partnering with the COPS Office to host three roundtable convenings of member chiefs to discuss the implementation of selected recommendations from the Task Force Report. The discussions will explore experiences and lessons from agencies that may have implemented some of the recommendations, including associated challenges, and the role of senior leaders making the changes called for in the Task Force Report. Key ideas from the discussion will be captured and shared with the field through a report on the discussions. The first roundtable will take place in Nashville, Tennessee in June.
In addition, the International Association of Chiefs of Police has committed to building a National Center for Community-Police Relations (NCCPR) which will provide support to any local law enforcement agencies that wish to address the issues raised in the Task Force Report. Support will include: providing educational materials that will break down the Task Force recommendations for all levels of officer; on-site culture assessments to determine the strengths and weaknesses of local agencies relating to the report’s six pillars; using the train-the-trainer model to create a national cadre of local agency officers who can train others on recommendation implementation; and leader-to-leader mentoring to allow leaders who have successfully implemented recommendations to work with those desiring to do so.
Helping Police Get People Needed Services
Since 2011, the Ford Foundation, with other foundations, has supported Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) in Seattle, an innovative arrest diversion program co-designed by police, prosecutors, public defenders, civil rights leaders and public health experts. This evidence-based program lets law enforcement officers directly divert people, whom they could arrest for low-level crimes, such as drug or prostitution offenses, to case managers, who assist with housing, treatment and other supportive services, instead of using jail and prosecution. An evaluation by the University of Washington, funded by the Arnold Foundation and released in March 2015, found that participants in the program had 58% lower odds of a subsequent arrest as compared to a control group. Equally important, it helps improve the relationship between the police and the people they encounter on the streets. Consistent with the Task Force recommendation that law enforcement agencies “emphasize . . . alternatives to arrest or summons in situations where appropriate,” the Ford Foundation plans to work with other foundations to provide technical assistance to jurisdictions around the country planning to implement LEAD. Over 30 jurisdictions nationally have expressed interest and will be invited to a convening to be hosted by The White House and the Ford Foundation in July.
Equipment Working Group Final Report
In addition to the work completed by the Task Force on 21st Century Policing, a separate federal interagency working group—led by the Departments of Justice, Defense and Homeland Security – has now completed an extensive review of federal programs that support the transfer of equipment to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. On the basis of that review, the working group developed a series of concrete steps to enhance accountability, increase transparency, and better serve the needs of law enforcement and local communities. The President has directed departments and agencies to put the working group’s recommendations into practice and continue to partner with law enforcement and local communities during the implementation process. The working group report is available HERE.
The working group developed a unified list of prohibited equipment that may not be acquired under any of the various programs. This list includes tracked armored vehicles, weaponized aircraft and vehicles, bayonets, grenade launchers, and large-caliber firearms.
The working group developed a unified list of equipment that law enforcement may acquire only in accordance with new and more rigorous controls. This controlled list includes armored vehicles, tactical vehicles, riot gear, and specialized firearms and ammunition.
Uniform Acquisition Standards: Across all programs, the transfer of equipment on the controlled list will require the consent of the appropriate local civilian governing body (e.g., City Council, County Council, Mayor) as well as a clear and persuasive explanation of the need for the equipment and the appropriate law enforcement purpose that it will serve.
Training and Protocols: To receive such equipment, law enforcement agencies must commit to have in place “general policing” training standards, including training on community policing, constitutional policing, and community impact. Agencies must also agree to protocols on the appropriate use, supervision, and operation of such equipment.
Required Data Collection: Law enforcement agencies must collect and retain certain information whenever such equipment is involved in a “significant incident.” Upon request or during a compliance review, the law enforcement agency must provide this information to the federal agency that supported the equipment’s acquisition. This information will also be made publicly available in accordance with the law enforcement agency's applicable policies and protocols.
FOUR CONVICTED FOR ROLES IN $50 MILLION MEDICARE FRAUD SCHEME
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, May 14, 2015
New Orleans Jury Convicts Two Doctors, a Nurse and an Office Manager for Roles in $50 Million Fraud Scheme
A jury in New Orleans convicted four employees of medical service clinics yesterday for their roles in a $50 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Anderson of the FBI’s New Orleans Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Dallas Regional Office and Louisiana Attorney General James D. “Buddy” Caldwell made the announcement.
Barbara Smith, M.D., 66, of Metairie, Louisiana; Roy Berkowitz, M.D., 69, of Slidell, Louisiana; Beverly Breaux, 67, of New Orleans; and Joe Ann Murthil, 57, of New Orleans, were convicted on all counts after a five-day jury trial before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Sarah S. Vance of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Evidence introduced at trial showed that the defendants and others carried out a home health care fraud scheme in and around New Orleans through multiple companies over the course of more than 10 years. Smith and Berkowitz falsely claimed that thousands of Medicare recipients were homebound and required nursing or therapy services to be provided in their homes. Breaux was a registered nurse who falsely certified that these patients were homebound, and falsely claimed to have treated patients that she had not seen. Murthil was an office manager and biller at one home health company who assisted with the payment of illegal kickbacks to patient recruiters. Murthil also submitted false claims to Medicare stating that patients were homebound when some of these patients had jobs, had not received services or did not want services. From 2007 through 2014, the companies in this scheme submitted more than $56 million in claims to Medicare, the vast majority of which were fraudulent. Medicare paid approximately $50.7 million on these claims.
Sentencing for the defendants is scheduled for Aug. 26, 2015. In total, 13 defendants have been charged for their roles in this scheme. Nine other defendants previously pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and the Louisiana Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Louisiana. This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys William Kanellis and Antonio Pozos and Assistant Chief Ben Curtis of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 2,100 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6.5 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
New Orleans Jury Convicts Two Doctors, a Nurse and an Office Manager for Roles in $50 Million Fraud Scheme
A jury in New Orleans convicted four employees of medical service clinics yesterday for their roles in a $50 million Medicare fraud scheme.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth A. Polite of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Anderson of the FBI’s New Orleans Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Dallas Regional Office and Louisiana Attorney General James D. “Buddy” Caldwell made the announcement.
Barbara Smith, M.D., 66, of Metairie, Louisiana; Roy Berkowitz, M.D., 69, of Slidell, Louisiana; Beverly Breaux, 67, of New Orleans; and Joe Ann Murthil, 57, of New Orleans, were convicted on all counts after a five-day jury trial before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Sarah S. Vance of the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Evidence introduced at trial showed that the defendants and others carried out a home health care fraud scheme in and around New Orleans through multiple companies over the course of more than 10 years. Smith and Berkowitz falsely claimed that thousands of Medicare recipients were homebound and required nursing or therapy services to be provided in their homes. Breaux was a registered nurse who falsely certified that these patients were homebound, and falsely claimed to have treated patients that she had not seen. Murthil was an office manager and biller at one home health company who assisted with the payment of illegal kickbacks to patient recruiters. Murthil also submitted false claims to Medicare stating that patients were homebound when some of these patients had jobs, had not received services or did not want services. From 2007 through 2014, the companies in this scheme submitted more than $56 million in claims to Medicare, the vast majority of which were fraudulent. Medicare paid approximately $50.7 million on these claims.
Sentencing for the defendants is scheduled for Aug. 26, 2015. In total, 13 defendants have been charged for their roles in this scheme. Nine other defendants previously pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and the Louisiana Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Louisiana. This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys William Kanellis and Antonio Pozos and Assistant Chief Ben Curtis of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 2,100 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6.5 billion. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS WITH STAFF AT SEOUL EMBASSY STAFF
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Meets with the Staff and Families of Embassy Seoul, U.S. Forces Korea, Republic of Korea Military Personnel, and Koreans Who Assisted Ambassador Lippert
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Collier Field House, Yongsan Army Garrison
Seoul, South Korea
May 18, 2015
GEN SCAPARROTTI: (Applause.) Well, welcome. It’s my great pleasure to introduce our ambassador. He’s a seasoned diplomat, has a deep appreciation for Korea as a country and also this region. And he’s also a seasoned service member with experience down range and appreciates what we in the military do here every day to defend Korea. So if you’d give a warm welcome to our ambassador, Ambassador Mark Lippert, please. (Applause.)
AMBASSADOR LIPPERT: All right, thanks, everybody. I’m going to be – it’s just a great honor to be here, and thanks, General Scap – a great partner. We have one team, one fight here, so it’s a great, great partnership with the military. Just – I’ve been given the great pleasure of introducing our Secretary of State, Secretary Kerry, a man who literally needs no introduction, but just so people know: a person who served in the military honorably; the son of a Foreign Service officer; chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; federal – or prosecutor; again, a welcome, a distinguished – please welcome a very distinguished, finest public servant, Secretary Kerry. Thanks. (Applause.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Wow, thank you very much. Thank you, guys, very much. We appreciate it. What a rousing welcome. It is great to be here. I’m honored to be here, delighted to be partially introduced by General Scap, Scaparrotti, and appreciate his leadership of U.S. forces in Korea. And for all of you guys in uniform, every single one of you, our friends who serve with us who host us here, we’re so grateful to all of you. I’m honored to be here today. Thank you very, very much. And kids, thank you for coming out. It’s really good to see you all. Appreciate it.
I’ll tell you, I served 28 full years in the United States Senate, and in the last couple of years politics began to change in America. And I was walking through the airport in Boston one day, and I kind of – you learn how to walk and not necessarily have somebody see you because you knew something would come up, some issue, something that mattered. And so this guy sort of shouts at me and says, “Hey, you! Hey, you, anybody ever tell you you look like that Kerry we sent down to Washington?” (Laughter.) And I said, “Yeah, they tell me that all the time.” He says, “Kind of makes you mad, don’t it?” (Laughter.) So that’s how bad politics has gotten back home. You guys aren’t missing anything, I’ll tell you.
I am really happy to be here. When President Obama came here, he talked about this being the frontier of freedom. And when you look at the events that are going on in the world today – I was just recently in Africa, and I was at AFRICOM in Djibouti. I met with a lot of your fellow service folks. And then I was in Somalia; I was the first Secretary of State to ever go to Mogadishu, and they wouldn’t let me off the base – it’s that dangerous still there. But the folks there are doing an amazing job. No matter where I go, anywhere in the world, I am privileged to see you in uniform and I want – I’ll come back to the State Department in a minute, but I want to speak to those of you in uniform.
The – I had the privilege – I know Mark also served. He was in the Navy. I served in the Navy. I was in the Brown Water Navy in Vietnam during the 1960s, late 1960s, so I’m not quite as old as – and I think back on that because I remember being there in Christmas of 1968 and feeling kind of distant from family and all the rest of it. So I have always had a deep, deep appreciation for what it means to put on the uniform of our country and to go serve. But I’ll tell you this: Today’s military, all of you, are so much better trained, so much better prepared, so much better equipped, and our military overall is so far ahead and away the finest fighting force, most capable entity on the face of this planet, and every single one of us in civilian life every day wake up and proudly say thank you to you for your service. We are deeply, deeply grateful for what you’re doing. You are on the frontier of freedom. And here particularly in this part of the world, as we see Kim Jong-un engaging in these extraordinary, provocative activities, building nuclear weapons against all of the UN conventions and everything that we’ve tried to prevent together with the Six-Party powers – Russia, China, Japan, et cetera – it’s dangerous. And nobody quite knows what a reckless person like this fellow will do, so you have to be prepared for every eventuality, which is why we redeployed some ships and forces and why we’re talking about THAAD and other things today.
But in the end, the greatest deterrence we have is really all of you and the capacity that the world knows you bring to the table. We’re fighting on so many fronts right now, it’s challenging. I talked to Henry Kissinger, the famous Henry Kissinger the other day. He’s 90-something now, and we were talking about Iran and Iran’s nuclear weapon and the deal we’re trying to negotiate. And I was – he was telling me about not flying around too much. And I said, “Well, you’re the guy who wrote the book on shuttle diplomacy and moved around.” He said, “No, no, no.” He said, “I had one or two things to deal with. You guys are dealing with Afghanistan and Pakistan and North Korea and Syria and Libya and Yemen, Iraq – everything simultaneously.” And we have this unbelievable set of non-state actors. During the Cold War, we were dealing with states. Now we have these non-state actors, and it’s a whole different challenge. And it’s going to go on for a while.
But I’ll tell you this, from what I’ve seen of what we’re doing in Iraq today as we’re pushing ISIL back – and we will push them out of Iraq ultimately, and we’re putting together the plans to be able to know exactly how we’re going to deal with Syria. In the end, there’s nothing to negotiate. There’s no way to deal with these people except eliminate them from the field of battle, and that is exactly what we are going to do over time. So I thank you for all you do. (Applause.)
Now, we are very privileged, as you all know, in this diplomatic room we’re in today. There’s not a lot of separation between the military and diplomats anymore. I was in Kunar province, in Afghanistan. How many of you served in Afghanistan? Well, I got up there – thank you for that service, and we are trying very hard to make sure that transition follows through and honors your service and the sacrifice that was made there. But I’ll tell you, when I was up in Kunar province a couple years ago, a few years ago, before I became Secretary, I met a young Navy commander who was the head of the FOB up there, forward operating base, and I was briefed by him. And it was really one of the best briefings I’ve ever had in all of my public life. This guy knew every tribe. He knew every leader. He knew what the rivalries were between them – how long and when. He knew the governor. He knew the mayor. He was a mayor himself fundamentally, but he was also a psychologist, a teacher, a planner, a city planner. It’s the most incredible demand on skill set.
And Bob Gates, our former Secretary of Defense, said many times that he thought a whole bunch of what used to happen in the State Department had been shifted over to the Department of Defense. And now it’s sort of seamless. There’s a kind of integration. So we’re all in the same business, folks. We’re trying to get people to understand that life can offer better alternatives than a lot of folks opt for. And we believe in peace and stability and freedom and democracy. I just came from talking about the internet and the freedom it brings to people. And Korea is a great partner in all of that.
But we are privileged, alongside you, to have a group of diplomats made up of local staff – I want all the local staff to raise your hands, everybody who’s a local hire here in South Korea, in Seoul. We have any number of them? Yeah, we’ve got a few here. There we are. Thank you very much, because we can’t do our work without you and we very much appreciate what you do. But I also thank the 200-plus direct hires, all the family members who are part of this effort. Regrettably, as we learned recently with the vicious assault on our ambassador, everybody has a risk and we’re all bearing those risks wherever we are in the world. It’s a dangerous place.
So I’m very, very grateful to every member of the Foreign Service, whether you’re local hire or a civil servant or FSO or TDY or a political appointee or you’re here with another department of our government. A profound thank you to all of you who make our embassy work. We’re very, very grateful to you.
And what we are doing is connected to what every other embassy and every other person in military is doing anywhere else in the world. These are not a series of ink blots somewhere spread around. It’s all connected. It’s all about the security of our country, it’s about protecting our interests and projecting our values, and helping to bring peace and stability because everywhere today, the world is so interconnected, nobody has a way to just isolate themselves and pretend you can get by without being connected to what’s happening in some other part of the world. That’s the world we live in today and that’s the world our kids are going to grow up in and manage, and we need to leave this place in better shape for them than we found it. That’s our obligation.
So to every single one – first of all, to Mark Lippert I want to say, and to Robyn, what a great job they are doing here. Mark showed indomitable spirit in the attack that he suffered and in just showing up for work and never meeting a beat. I talked to him in the hospital a couple of times. I was amazed by how calm and ready to get back to work and understanding he was. And I think every one of us here is grateful for his leadership and respects his courage and determination. And Mark, thank you for the job you’re doing. (Applause.)
I knew Mark when he worked in the Senate. He worked for a couple of other senator colleagues of mine. But I really like him, not just because he’s a Navy guy, but he brought a dog over here. He brought his Basset Hound here called Grigsby, and I’m told Grigsby – I have a dog; it’s called the State Department “DiploMutt” – (laughter) – and I’m really appreciative that he’s following in that tradition. Though I understand his dog speaks Korean, mine is still learning “sit, stay, come,” basics. (Laughter.) But we’ll get there one day.
Anyway, I don’t want to tell you all up. I want to have a chance to shake some hands and say hello to everybody. But believe me, in a complicated world, at a difficult time with a lot on everybody’s plate, it just could not be more reassuring, it could not be more heartwarming to know we got folks like all of you doing the job to carry the banner for the United States of America. A lot of people do not get to get up in the morning and go to work and be able to get the reward that everybody here gets for helping to make your country safer and helping to bring a better life to a lot of other people.
So God bless you all. Thank you. Love you and what you do and everything else, and stay at it. Your country is so grateful, and President Obama sends his very, very best to everybody. Thank you all very, very much. (Applause.)
Meets with the Staff and Families of Embassy Seoul, U.S. Forces Korea, Republic of Korea Military Personnel, and Koreans Who Assisted Ambassador Lippert
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Collier Field House, Yongsan Army Garrison
Seoul, South Korea
May 18, 2015
GEN SCAPARROTTI: (Applause.) Well, welcome. It’s my great pleasure to introduce our ambassador. He’s a seasoned diplomat, has a deep appreciation for Korea as a country and also this region. And he’s also a seasoned service member with experience down range and appreciates what we in the military do here every day to defend Korea. So if you’d give a warm welcome to our ambassador, Ambassador Mark Lippert, please. (Applause.)
AMBASSADOR LIPPERT: All right, thanks, everybody. I’m going to be – it’s just a great honor to be here, and thanks, General Scap – a great partner. We have one team, one fight here, so it’s a great, great partnership with the military. Just – I’ve been given the great pleasure of introducing our Secretary of State, Secretary Kerry, a man who literally needs no introduction, but just so people know: a person who served in the military honorably; the son of a Foreign Service officer; chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; federal – or prosecutor; again, a welcome, a distinguished – please welcome a very distinguished, finest public servant, Secretary Kerry. Thanks. (Applause.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Wow, thank you very much. Thank you, guys, very much. We appreciate it. What a rousing welcome. It is great to be here. I’m honored to be here, delighted to be partially introduced by General Scap, Scaparrotti, and appreciate his leadership of U.S. forces in Korea. And for all of you guys in uniform, every single one of you, our friends who serve with us who host us here, we’re so grateful to all of you. I’m honored to be here today. Thank you very, very much. And kids, thank you for coming out. It’s really good to see you all. Appreciate it.
I’ll tell you, I served 28 full years in the United States Senate, and in the last couple of years politics began to change in America. And I was walking through the airport in Boston one day, and I kind of – you learn how to walk and not necessarily have somebody see you because you knew something would come up, some issue, something that mattered. And so this guy sort of shouts at me and says, “Hey, you! Hey, you, anybody ever tell you you look like that Kerry we sent down to Washington?” (Laughter.) And I said, “Yeah, they tell me that all the time.” He says, “Kind of makes you mad, don’t it?” (Laughter.) So that’s how bad politics has gotten back home. You guys aren’t missing anything, I’ll tell you.
I am really happy to be here. When President Obama came here, he talked about this being the frontier of freedom. And when you look at the events that are going on in the world today – I was just recently in Africa, and I was at AFRICOM in Djibouti. I met with a lot of your fellow service folks. And then I was in Somalia; I was the first Secretary of State to ever go to Mogadishu, and they wouldn’t let me off the base – it’s that dangerous still there. But the folks there are doing an amazing job. No matter where I go, anywhere in the world, I am privileged to see you in uniform and I want – I’ll come back to the State Department in a minute, but I want to speak to those of you in uniform.
The – I had the privilege – I know Mark also served. He was in the Navy. I served in the Navy. I was in the Brown Water Navy in Vietnam during the 1960s, late 1960s, so I’m not quite as old as – and I think back on that because I remember being there in Christmas of 1968 and feeling kind of distant from family and all the rest of it. So I have always had a deep, deep appreciation for what it means to put on the uniform of our country and to go serve. But I’ll tell you this: Today’s military, all of you, are so much better trained, so much better prepared, so much better equipped, and our military overall is so far ahead and away the finest fighting force, most capable entity on the face of this planet, and every single one of us in civilian life every day wake up and proudly say thank you to you for your service. We are deeply, deeply grateful for what you’re doing. You are on the frontier of freedom. And here particularly in this part of the world, as we see Kim Jong-un engaging in these extraordinary, provocative activities, building nuclear weapons against all of the UN conventions and everything that we’ve tried to prevent together with the Six-Party powers – Russia, China, Japan, et cetera – it’s dangerous. And nobody quite knows what a reckless person like this fellow will do, so you have to be prepared for every eventuality, which is why we redeployed some ships and forces and why we’re talking about THAAD and other things today.
But in the end, the greatest deterrence we have is really all of you and the capacity that the world knows you bring to the table. We’re fighting on so many fronts right now, it’s challenging. I talked to Henry Kissinger, the famous Henry Kissinger the other day. He’s 90-something now, and we were talking about Iran and Iran’s nuclear weapon and the deal we’re trying to negotiate. And I was – he was telling me about not flying around too much. And I said, “Well, you’re the guy who wrote the book on shuttle diplomacy and moved around.” He said, “No, no, no.” He said, “I had one or two things to deal with. You guys are dealing with Afghanistan and Pakistan and North Korea and Syria and Libya and Yemen, Iraq – everything simultaneously.” And we have this unbelievable set of non-state actors. During the Cold War, we were dealing with states. Now we have these non-state actors, and it’s a whole different challenge. And it’s going to go on for a while.
But I’ll tell you this, from what I’ve seen of what we’re doing in Iraq today as we’re pushing ISIL back – and we will push them out of Iraq ultimately, and we’re putting together the plans to be able to know exactly how we’re going to deal with Syria. In the end, there’s nothing to negotiate. There’s no way to deal with these people except eliminate them from the field of battle, and that is exactly what we are going to do over time. So I thank you for all you do. (Applause.)
Now, we are very privileged, as you all know, in this diplomatic room we’re in today. There’s not a lot of separation between the military and diplomats anymore. I was in Kunar province, in Afghanistan. How many of you served in Afghanistan? Well, I got up there – thank you for that service, and we are trying very hard to make sure that transition follows through and honors your service and the sacrifice that was made there. But I’ll tell you, when I was up in Kunar province a couple years ago, a few years ago, before I became Secretary, I met a young Navy commander who was the head of the FOB up there, forward operating base, and I was briefed by him. And it was really one of the best briefings I’ve ever had in all of my public life. This guy knew every tribe. He knew every leader. He knew what the rivalries were between them – how long and when. He knew the governor. He knew the mayor. He was a mayor himself fundamentally, but he was also a psychologist, a teacher, a planner, a city planner. It’s the most incredible demand on skill set.
And Bob Gates, our former Secretary of Defense, said many times that he thought a whole bunch of what used to happen in the State Department had been shifted over to the Department of Defense. And now it’s sort of seamless. There’s a kind of integration. So we’re all in the same business, folks. We’re trying to get people to understand that life can offer better alternatives than a lot of folks opt for. And we believe in peace and stability and freedom and democracy. I just came from talking about the internet and the freedom it brings to people. And Korea is a great partner in all of that.
But we are privileged, alongside you, to have a group of diplomats made up of local staff – I want all the local staff to raise your hands, everybody who’s a local hire here in South Korea, in Seoul. We have any number of them? Yeah, we’ve got a few here. There we are. Thank you very much, because we can’t do our work without you and we very much appreciate what you do. But I also thank the 200-plus direct hires, all the family members who are part of this effort. Regrettably, as we learned recently with the vicious assault on our ambassador, everybody has a risk and we’re all bearing those risks wherever we are in the world. It’s a dangerous place.
So I’m very, very grateful to every member of the Foreign Service, whether you’re local hire or a civil servant or FSO or TDY or a political appointee or you’re here with another department of our government. A profound thank you to all of you who make our embassy work. We’re very, very grateful to you.
And what we are doing is connected to what every other embassy and every other person in military is doing anywhere else in the world. These are not a series of ink blots somewhere spread around. It’s all connected. It’s all about the security of our country, it’s about protecting our interests and projecting our values, and helping to bring peace and stability because everywhere today, the world is so interconnected, nobody has a way to just isolate themselves and pretend you can get by without being connected to what’s happening in some other part of the world. That’s the world we live in today and that’s the world our kids are going to grow up in and manage, and we need to leave this place in better shape for them than we found it. That’s our obligation.
So to every single one – first of all, to Mark Lippert I want to say, and to Robyn, what a great job they are doing here. Mark showed indomitable spirit in the attack that he suffered and in just showing up for work and never meeting a beat. I talked to him in the hospital a couple of times. I was amazed by how calm and ready to get back to work and understanding he was. And I think every one of us here is grateful for his leadership and respects his courage and determination. And Mark, thank you for the job you’re doing. (Applause.)
I knew Mark when he worked in the Senate. He worked for a couple of other senator colleagues of mine. But I really like him, not just because he’s a Navy guy, but he brought a dog over here. He brought his Basset Hound here called Grigsby, and I’m told Grigsby – I have a dog; it’s called the State Department “DiploMutt” – (laughter) – and I’m really appreciative that he’s following in that tradition. Though I understand his dog speaks Korean, mine is still learning “sit, stay, come,” basics. (Laughter.) But we’ll get there one day.
Anyway, I don’t want to tell you all up. I want to have a chance to shake some hands and say hello to everybody. But believe me, in a complicated world, at a difficult time with a lot on everybody’s plate, it just could not be more reassuring, it could not be more heartwarming to know we got folks like all of you doing the job to carry the banner for the United States of America. A lot of people do not get to get up in the morning and go to work and be able to get the reward that everybody here gets for helping to make your country safer and helping to bring a better life to a lot of other people.
So God bless you all. Thank you. Love you and what you do and everything else, and stay at it. Your country is so grateful, and President Obama sends his very, very best to everybody. Thank you all very, very much. (Applause.)
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS AT SEATTLE PASSPORT AGENCY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks to the Staff at the Seattle Passport Agency
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Korea University
Seattle, WA
May 18, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much, Teresa. Thank you very much. I’m really happy to be here with everybody. Are you doing all right?
STAFF: (Cheers.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, you’re getting paid a lot of overtime, I hear. (Laughter.) So I mean, that’s pretty good. That’s all right. I just want to thank you all. I thought it’d be fun to come by here. I just was in China, and a lot of folks there – last year, actually, at my last visit – I didn’t do it this time – I was able to give out a bunch of visas to kids, to business people. A big fourth grade class was coming over here.
And – but most recently and most poignantly, I was in Djibouti a little over a week ago, and that’s the result of a tragedy, obviously. And you’ve got this enormous influx of American Yemenis trapped in Yemen who want to come home, and they were trying to get out on various ships. So our consular division there has been absolutely spectacular. People have been out there on the docks meeting boats as they come in trying to assure people that their lives are going to be okay.
And so a lot of people don’t know this division, and yet you’re the face of the State Department and you’re the face of America for countless numbers of people. I gather about 40,000 people come in here passport direct, and then about 150,000 passports and visas are issued through other mechanisms and paper and so forth, which is an incredible, staggering number.
And needless to say Seattle – which is why I’m here – is so important to trade, to American jobs, to this new global world that we live in. And so more and more people are going to be asking you for overtime – (laughter) – and obviously, this is a division that’s going to be increasingly pressured everywhere around the world. It’s a good thing, not a bad thing. It’s a good thing, because with that travel, with those reunifications of families and so forth, comes a huge positive event and moment for America and for those people.
And a lot of people don’t realize it; you actually save marriages. It’s true, right? You actually wind up uniting a family with an adopted child. You get a senior citizen who may have difficulties reuniting with their family in a moment of difficulty, or somebody’s had a terrible loss and there’s an urgency to processing. So this is a place where human relationships and human emotions get served, and I’m proud of that. And I think every single one of you, I’m sure you are just equally as proud of that.
Somebody told me that they came in here and they were so concerned and upset, and then they – one of you took care of them, and they left here happy and said we should have a Hug a State Department Employee Day. (Laughter.) And as far as I’m concerned, we could do that every day. It would be great.
So I just wanted to come by and say hi and see if, notwithstanding that I come from Boston and New England, you guys would let me come in the door. (Laughter.) Mea culpa. (Laughter.) But I’m really happy to be here with you. Thank you. A profound thank you to you from President Obama, from me, from all of America, for the hard work you do here and for the tremendous way in which you represent our country . We’re very proud of you. So thank you very, very much . Glad to be here, thank you. (Applause.)
Remarks to the Staff at the Seattle Passport Agency
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Korea University
Seattle, WA
May 18, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much, Teresa. Thank you very much. I’m really happy to be here with everybody. Are you doing all right?
STAFF: (Cheers.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, you’re getting paid a lot of overtime, I hear. (Laughter.) So I mean, that’s pretty good. That’s all right. I just want to thank you all. I thought it’d be fun to come by here. I just was in China, and a lot of folks there – last year, actually, at my last visit – I didn’t do it this time – I was able to give out a bunch of visas to kids, to business people. A big fourth grade class was coming over here.
And – but most recently and most poignantly, I was in Djibouti a little over a week ago, and that’s the result of a tragedy, obviously. And you’ve got this enormous influx of American Yemenis trapped in Yemen who want to come home, and they were trying to get out on various ships. So our consular division there has been absolutely spectacular. People have been out there on the docks meeting boats as they come in trying to assure people that their lives are going to be okay.
And so a lot of people don’t know this division, and yet you’re the face of the State Department and you’re the face of America for countless numbers of people. I gather about 40,000 people come in here passport direct, and then about 150,000 passports and visas are issued through other mechanisms and paper and so forth, which is an incredible, staggering number.
And needless to say Seattle – which is why I’m here – is so important to trade, to American jobs, to this new global world that we live in. And so more and more people are going to be asking you for overtime – (laughter) – and obviously, this is a division that’s going to be increasingly pressured everywhere around the world. It’s a good thing, not a bad thing. It’s a good thing, because with that travel, with those reunifications of families and so forth, comes a huge positive event and moment for America and for those people.
And a lot of people don’t realize it; you actually save marriages. It’s true, right? You actually wind up uniting a family with an adopted child. You get a senior citizen who may have difficulties reuniting with their family in a moment of difficulty, or somebody’s had a terrible loss and there’s an urgency to processing. So this is a place where human relationships and human emotions get served, and I’m proud of that. And I think every single one of you, I’m sure you are just equally as proud of that.
Somebody told me that they came in here and they were so concerned and upset, and then they – one of you took care of them, and they left here happy and said we should have a Hug a State Department Employee Day. (Laughter.) And as far as I’m concerned, we could do that every day. It would be great.
So I just wanted to come by and say hi and see if, notwithstanding that I come from Boston and New England, you guys would let me come in the door. (Laughter.) Mea culpa. (Laughter.) But I’m really happy to be here with you. Thank you. A profound thank you to you from President Obama, from me, from all of America, for the hard work you do here and for the tremendous way in which you represent our country . We’re very proud of you. So thank you very, very much . Glad to be here, thank you. (Applause.)
NEW MILITARY AIRSTRIKES AGAINST ISIL IN SYRIA AND IRAQ
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Military Airstrikes Hit ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 18, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Bomber and attack aircraft conducted six airstrikes near Hasakah, which struck one large and three small ISIL tactical units, destroying 14 ISIL vehicles, five ISIL fighting positions and three ISIL armored vehicles.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 19 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Huwayjah, three airstrikes struck an ISIL staging area.
-- Near Beiji, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL vehicle.
-- Near Fallujah, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL armored personnel carriers and two ISIL armored vehicles.
-- Near Ramadi, eight airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units and three ISIL buildings, destroying four ISIL fighting positions, five ISIL buildings, two ISIL armored vehicles, two ISIL mortar positions, an ISIL armored personnel carrier, an ISIL ammunition structure, and an ISIL command and control facility.
-- Near Sinjar, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units and an ISIL sniper position, destroying six ISIL buildings and six ISIL heavy machine guns.
-- Near Tal Afar, two airstrikes destroyed an ISIL building, an ISIL excavator, an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL vehicle-borne improvised explosive device.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Military Airstrikes Hit ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 18, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Bomber and attack aircraft conducted six airstrikes near Hasakah, which struck one large and three small ISIL tactical units, destroying 14 ISIL vehicles, five ISIL fighting positions and three ISIL armored vehicles.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 19 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Huwayjah, three airstrikes struck an ISIL staging area.
-- Near Beiji, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL vehicle.
-- Near Fallujah, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL armored personnel carriers and two ISIL armored vehicles.
-- Near Ramadi, eight airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units and three ISIL buildings, destroying four ISIL fighting positions, five ISIL buildings, two ISIL armored vehicles, two ISIL mortar positions, an ISIL armored personnel carrier, an ISIL ammunition structure, and an ISIL command and control facility.
-- Near Sinjar, two airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units and an ISIL sniper position, destroying six ISIL buildings and six ISIL heavy machine guns.
-- Near Tal Afar, two airstrikes destroyed an ISIL building, an ISIL excavator, an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL vehicle-borne improvised explosive device.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
DOJ CHARGES MOBILE HOME PARK WITH REFUSING TO ALLOW FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN TO LIVE THERE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Monday, May 18, 2015
Justice Department Charges Owner of Indiana Mobile Home Park with Discrimination Against Families with Children
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the corporate owner and agent of the Gentle Manor Estates, a 173-lot mobile home park located in Crown Point, Indiana, for discriminating against families with children in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, alleges that Gentle Manor Estates, LLC and John Townsend, the corporate owner and agent, respectively, of the Gentle Manor Estates, violated the Fair Housing Act by maintaining and enforcing a discriminatory policy of refusing to allow families with children to live at the mobile home park. The allegations are based on evidence generated by the department’s Fair Housing Testing Program, in which individuals pose as renters to gather information about possible discriminatory practices.
“For over 25 years, the Fair Housing Act has prohibited housing providers from discriminating against families with children,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue its vigorous enforcement of the Fair Housing Act to ensure that families with children have equal access to housing opportunities.”
The lawsuit seeks an order prohibiting the defendants from engaging in future unlawful discrimination. It also seeks the payment of a civil penalty and monetary damages for the individuals who were refused the opportunity to rent at Gentle Manor Estates because of familial status.
The complaint is an allegation of unlawful conduct. The allegations must still be proven in federal court.
Monday, May 18, 2015
Justice Department Charges Owner of Indiana Mobile Home Park with Discrimination Against Families with Children
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the corporate owner and agent of the Gentle Manor Estates, a 173-lot mobile home park located in Crown Point, Indiana, for discriminating against families with children in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, alleges that Gentle Manor Estates, LLC and John Townsend, the corporate owner and agent, respectively, of the Gentle Manor Estates, violated the Fair Housing Act by maintaining and enforcing a discriminatory policy of refusing to allow families with children to live at the mobile home park. The allegations are based on evidence generated by the department’s Fair Housing Testing Program, in which individuals pose as renters to gather information about possible discriminatory practices.
“For over 25 years, the Fair Housing Act has prohibited housing providers from discriminating against families with children,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue its vigorous enforcement of the Fair Housing Act to ensure that families with children have equal access to housing opportunities.”
The lawsuit seeks an order prohibiting the defendants from engaging in future unlawful discrimination. It also seeks the payment of a civil penalty and monetary damages for the individuals who were refused the opportunity to rent at Gentle Manor Estates because of familial status.
The complaint is an allegation of unlawful conduct. The allegations must still be proven in federal court.
FTC CHALLENGES CLAIMS OF SUPPLEMENTS PREVENTING GRAY HAIR
FROM: FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Challenges Marketers’ Baseless Claims That Their Supplements Prevent or Reverse Gray Hair
Defendants Falsely Claimed Their Products Were Backed by Science, Agency Says
Two marketers of dietary supplements have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they made unfounded claims that their products could prevent or reverse gray hair. The agency is pursuing legal action in court against a third company for making similar claims.
Under settlements with the FTC, GetAwayGrey, LLC and its president Robin Duner-Fenter, the sellers of “Get Away Grey,” and Rise-N-Shine, LLC and its president Cathy Beggan, the sellers of “Go Away Gray,” are barred from making these types of gray hair elimination claims unless they have reliable scientific evidence to support them. The FTC also filed a complaint against COORGA Nutraceuticals Corporation and its principal Garfield Coore, who market a line of products called “Grey Defence.”
“These companies claimed their supplements could treat gray hair at its roots,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “In fact, their root problem was a lack of evidence for their claims.”
As detailed in the FTC’s separate complaints against GetAwayGrey, LLC, Rise-N-Shine, LLC, and COORGA Nutraceuticals Corporation and their respective principals, the defendants market dietary supplements containing the enzyme “catalase.” The defendants have claimed the catalase in their products attacks hydrogen peroxide, the chemical that causes hair to turn gray.
In addition to selling a dietary supplement, Rise-N-Shine also has marketed a catalase-containing shampoo and hair conditioner. The companies have sold their products online and through retailers such as CVS and Walgreens at prices ranging from $29.95 to $69.99 per bottle.
The FTC’s complaints allege that ads for the products made false or unsubstantiated claims that the products reverse or prevent the formation of gray hair, including:
“Watch your grey go away! Now, grey hair can be stopped and reversed . . . We stop grey hair by using a vitamin that includes the Catalase enzyme. Just two vitamin pills a day can bring back your natural hair color.” (GetAwayGrey)
“New & Improved! Now With 50% More Catalase . . . . ‘After 3 months of Go Away Gray, I can see white roots coming in darker. I’m very impressed!’ – D. Heindl” (Rise-N-Shine); and
“65% of Grey Defence Customers in [an] Observational Study Reversed Their Grey! Grey Defence Reverses Greying – Detailed Observational Study Proves it.” (COORGA)
The proposed orders against GetAwayGrey and Rise-N-Shine prohibit the defendants from representing that a covered product reverses or prevents the formation of gray hair, and from making any claim about the health benefits, performance, or efficacy of any covered product, unless the claim is non-misleading and the defendants have competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate it. They also require the defendants to retain certain records of human clinical testing that they rely on as competent and reliable scientific evidence.
The orders include a suspended $1,817,939 judgment against the GetAwayGrey defendants, and a $2 million suspended judgment against the Rise-N-Shine defendants, which would become due if the defendants are found to have misrepresented their financial condition.
The FTC acknowledges the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus for its referral of the COORGA Nutraceuticals case.
The Commission vote approving the three complaints and two proposed stipulated court orders was 5-0. The complaint and proposed order against GetAwayGrey and Robin Duner-Fenter were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. The complaint and proposed order against Rise-N-Shine and Cathy Beggan were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, and the complaint against COORGA and Garfield Coore was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming.
For information about how to avoid advertising fraud for these types of products, consumers can read Dietary Supplements: Health Information for Older People, and A Healthy Dose of Skepticism.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The case will be decided by the court. Stipulated final orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.
FTC Challenges Marketers’ Baseless Claims That Their Supplements Prevent or Reverse Gray Hair
Defendants Falsely Claimed Their Products Were Backed by Science, Agency Says
Two marketers of dietary supplements have agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they made unfounded claims that their products could prevent or reverse gray hair. The agency is pursuing legal action in court against a third company for making similar claims.
Under settlements with the FTC, GetAwayGrey, LLC and its president Robin Duner-Fenter, the sellers of “Get Away Grey,” and Rise-N-Shine, LLC and its president Cathy Beggan, the sellers of “Go Away Gray,” are barred from making these types of gray hair elimination claims unless they have reliable scientific evidence to support them. The FTC also filed a complaint against COORGA Nutraceuticals Corporation and its principal Garfield Coore, who market a line of products called “Grey Defence.”
“These companies claimed their supplements could treat gray hair at its roots,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “In fact, their root problem was a lack of evidence for their claims.”
As detailed in the FTC’s separate complaints against GetAwayGrey, LLC, Rise-N-Shine, LLC, and COORGA Nutraceuticals Corporation and their respective principals, the defendants market dietary supplements containing the enzyme “catalase.” The defendants have claimed the catalase in their products attacks hydrogen peroxide, the chemical that causes hair to turn gray.
In addition to selling a dietary supplement, Rise-N-Shine also has marketed a catalase-containing shampoo and hair conditioner. The companies have sold their products online and through retailers such as CVS and Walgreens at prices ranging from $29.95 to $69.99 per bottle.
The FTC’s complaints allege that ads for the products made false or unsubstantiated claims that the products reverse or prevent the formation of gray hair, including:
“Watch your grey go away! Now, grey hair can be stopped and reversed . . . We stop grey hair by using a vitamin that includes the Catalase enzyme. Just two vitamin pills a day can bring back your natural hair color.” (GetAwayGrey)
“New & Improved! Now With 50% More Catalase . . . . ‘After 3 months of Go Away Gray, I can see white roots coming in darker. I’m very impressed!’ – D. Heindl” (Rise-N-Shine); and
“65% of Grey Defence Customers in [an] Observational Study Reversed Their Grey! Grey Defence Reverses Greying – Detailed Observational Study Proves it.” (COORGA)
The proposed orders against GetAwayGrey and Rise-N-Shine prohibit the defendants from representing that a covered product reverses or prevents the formation of gray hair, and from making any claim about the health benefits, performance, or efficacy of any covered product, unless the claim is non-misleading and the defendants have competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate it. They also require the defendants to retain certain records of human clinical testing that they rely on as competent and reliable scientific evidence.
The orders include a suspended $1,817,939 judgment against the GetAwayGrey defendants, and a $2 million suspended judgment against the Rise-N-Shine defendants, which would become due if the defendants are found to have misrepresented their financial condition.
The FTC acknowledges the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus for its referral of the COORGA Nutraceuticals case.
The Commission vote approving the three complaints and two proposed stipulated court orders was 5-0. The complaint and proposed order against GetAwayGrey and Robin Duner-Fenter were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. The complaint and proposed order against Rise-N-Shine and Cathy Beggan were filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, and the complaint against COORGA and Garfield Coore was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming.
For information about how to avoid advertising fraud for these types of products, consumers can read Dietary Supplements: Health Information for Older People, and A Healthy Dose of Skepticism.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The case will be decided by the court. Stipulated final orders have the force of law when approved and signed by the District Court judge.
SAMANTHA POWER'S REMARKS AT BARNARD COLLEGE COMMENCEMENT
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
May 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Good afternoon, President Spar, faculty, trustees, alumni, families and friends of the strong and beautiful Barnard graduates! Congratulations, class of 2015!
Columbia grad Madeleine Albright has said, “It used to be that the only way a woman could truly make her foreign policy views felt was by marrying a diplomat, and then pouring tea on an offending ambassador's lap.” I’m here to tell you that in 2015, we have other options! [Applause].
I’m truly honored to be here, and to be among the amazing women, and men, on this stage, and to be with the amazing class of 2015 – I’m so honored that I invited my parents to your graduation. [Applause] And while we’re at it, let’s give a huge round of applause to all the parents and loved ones in the audience.
Your great school came into existence largely due to the vision of a remarkable woman, Annie Nathan Meyer. Meyer didn’t get the kind of schooling you got, or I got. Her mother kept her home as a small child because she wanted company. Meyer read voraciously, finishing all of Dickens’ books by the age of seven. [Laughter]. Yeah, seriously. When she was eleven, her mother died, and while her father agreed to let her go to school, he was so overprotective that he kept her home whenever there was bad weather.
When Meyer learned about a special college course for women at Columbia University, she set about secretly studying for examinations, which she passed on her first try. When she finally told her father, she later wrote, “He drew me gently and lovingly to him and announced, ‘You will never be married…Men hate intelligent wives.’” Meyer decided to go to Columbia anyway.
It was not what she had hoped. Women were not allowed into lectures; instead, they were given a reading list, a short meeting or two with the professor, and then an exam. When Meyer sat for her first exam, she found the questions were based entirely on the lectures that she had been barred from attending. Feeling what she called a “devastating sense of desolation,” she answered as best she could. And though she passed, she eventually dropped out, and, soon after, started her full-court press to secure the education for women that she had been denied. Four years later, in 1889, as we know, Barnard College – your college – was founded.
As Barnard finishes its 125th school year, it is safe to say that the cause of equality has come a very, very, very long way. But what I want to talk to you about today is how some of the remaining barriers to true equality can, and must, be overcome.
First, true equality will mean not letting our doubts silence our voices.
We live in a time where women have made tremendous strides, particularly here in the United States. And you all know the statistics. Women earn 60 percent of all undergraduate and graduate degrees; hold more than half of all professional-level jobs; and study after study shows that companies employing greater numbers of women outperform their competitors. And you know that, at the end of your four years, you are as well-equipped as any Barnard graduating class to make your mark. So why do you still feel that persistent self-doubt? That fear of making mistakes? And why do those doubts sometimes get in the way of your voices being heard?
I wish I had the answer. Instead, all I can tell you is that we all experience that feeling – even if it’s not obvious on the outside. I have even adopted a name for it – the Bat Cave; it’s that dark place in your head where all the voices tell you every reason you can’t do something.
Let me give you an example. Rewind to August 2008. I am working as a senior advisor on the campaign for then-Senator Barack Obama – who has just earned the Democratic nomination for President. And I find out that I’m pregnant with my first child. Now, I have an amazing husband, and this news – it’s seismic. I am over the moon.
And I tell no one at work. Lots of nods, I bet, back here and up there [Laughter].
I have never gone through this before, and I am worried that if I advertise my blissful state, it will affect how seriously I will be taken by the campaign, and potentially even shut me out of the kind of job that could make an impact. Everything I know of then-Senator Obama and the people around him tells me at the time that this makes zero sense. After all, this is a man who was raised by a single, working mother. A man whose brilliant wife worked while raising two daughters. A man who would go on to demonstrate daily as President his commitment to supporting working moms and dads. But at the time, I am way too deep in the Bat Cave to see any of that.
Eventually, it is my body that tells people the news – not me. And I acquired quite a collection of scarves.
I ended up having two babies while spending four years at the White House, and thereafter still managed to get to serve in my dream job, representing the United States at the United Nations [Applause]. But if I felt the way I did with a boss like mine, I can only imagine how other women feel – the ecstasy of a pregnancy clouded by the fear it could cause severe professional damage.
Last year, when the Ukraine crisis began, I momentarily experienced another version of this anxiety. Russia, a permanent member on the UN Security Council, is trying to lop off part of its neighbor, Ukraine – a clear violation of the rules that the United Nations was created to defend. An urgent UN Security Council session is called on Russia’s attempted takeover of Crimea. I take my seat, and my mind recalls Prague 1968, Budapest 1956, and some epic occasions in the twentieth century when Ambassadors Adlai Stevenson, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Madeleine Albright, and other legends made memorable, forceful interventions at the United Nations on behalf of the United States.
Then it dawns on me: that’s me now! I’m the United States!
Deep in the Bat Cave, I think of the consequences if my response – the United States’ response – is too forceful, or not forceful enough. I think of the overwhelming responsibility that comes with speaking on behalf of America and the ideals we stand for. And I think of the people of Ukraine who are counting on me. And I speak.
The fact is that doubt – and his more lovable big sister, self-awareness – both are more pronounced among women. Turns out Batwoman’s cave often has more square footage than Batman’s.
True equality will not mean shedding our doubts or our self-awareness – but rather not letting them quiet us when we should be speaking up. There are more than enough forces out there doing that without needing our help. And it will mean that, while everyone will have moments of uncertainty – and humility is an especially prized quality – women should not have to worry that if we stumble, it will be more noticed than when men do the same [Applause].
But it is not enough to find our own voices. True equality also requires that we learn to hear, and lift up, the voices of those whom others choose not to hear. This is my second point: You have to teach yourself to see the people and communities who live in society’s blind spots. Of course, everyone should strive to do this. But as women who, even to this day, know what it feels like to be unheard or unseen, we have an additional responsibility. I think the burden of being treated differently is also our strength – because it gives us the capacity to notice when others are treated differently. To see the blind spots.
That includes the discussion of gender identity on campus, which the Barnard community – and particularly your class – has embraced [Applause]. We must see that seemingly simple actions that most of us don’t have to think twice about – the bathroom we walk into; the gender listed on our driver’s licenses; the name people use to address us; the boxes “male” and “female” on a college application – can be a source of profound anguish for others. We must recognize the cruel and hostile treatment that transgender people experience in so many communities, which, according to one study, has contributed to 40 percent of transgender people in the United States attempting suicide during the course of their lives.
We must all work toward the goal of ensuring equal rights for all people – lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. And while we have a very long way to go, I’m extremely proud to work for an administration that has lifted Medicare’s ban on covering gender reassignment surgery, and whose Justice Department has decided to take on cases of discrimination based on an individual’s gender identity, including transgender status, under the Civil Rights Act.
Now again, it is no coincidence that women’s colleges have been among the first to embrace this discussion. Women know what it feels like to have to fight to be part of institutions whose doors should never have been closed to them.
You often hear people say that past generations struggled so that you would not have to. But I say, past generations struggled so you would be free to fight on behalf of someone else.
The idea of seeing the struggles of others around you – whether the other is a gender or an ethnic or religious group, or even an entire nation that usually does not have a voice – is one of the principles that has defined President Obama’s foreign policy. We know that America is stronger, that our policies are more effective, and that the world is better off when America is listening. And that includes listening to countries and communities that often feel invisible to the world’s superpowers.
That is why, when I started as the United States Ambassador to the UN a year and a half ago, I decided to visit as many of the other 192 UN ambassadors as I could, regardless of the size or the geopolitical heft of the country that they represent. By visiting their missions, rather than having them travel to ours, as was common practice, I would be able to see the national art they wanted to showcase, the family photos on their desks, the books that they had carried with them long distances to America. And I could show them America’s respect and our curiosity. So far, I’ve visited 119 countries’ missions. And when I visit, I try [Applause], when I visit I try to put my long list of policy asks aside. Instead, I ask the ambassadors about their upbringings, about how they became diplomats, what they are most proud of about their countries.
True equality will mean not just seeing the unseen, but also finding a way to make invisible problems visible – and this is my third point. I think the contemporary conversation about the challenge that women face in balancing a demanding job with raising a family is important. Women are opening up about how overwhelmed they feel trying to “have it all.” Back in 2013, when I arrived in my job, I was still nursing my one-year-old daughter as I tried to move my family to New York, and find schools for my two kids – and no, I did not enroll my then-four-year-old in a Kaplan course so he could get into a New York pre-school. I had to do all this at the same time, roughly, that the Syrian regime decided to stage massive chemical weapons attacks against its people, horrific atrocities were being committed in the Central African Republic, and a new government was cracking down on the opposition in Egypt. When asked by friends whether I subscribed to “lean in,” I would instead describe my philosophy then as “hang on.” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has put it even better – “lean on.”
While Ambassador, I have spoken in public a fair amount about the ways my six-year-old, my now six-year-old son Declan, interacts with my new life – making visible a version of what goes on behind the scenes in many homes. Like most young kids with their parents, he seems to delight in interrupting me when I’m on the phone. “Mommy,” he says, “Can I ask you something?” I shake my head and I whisper, “I’m on the phone.” He says, “Mommy it’s important.” “I’ll be off in a minute.” “But Mommy, what’s the score of the Nationals game?” he says. I beg him to let me finish the call. But he is insistent. “Mommy, I said it’s important.” And I hold my hand over the phone and say – “Mine too, this is important too” – I may well be talking to the UN Secretary-General, a UN envoy on a crackling phone line from a war zone, or a fellow diplomat that I’m trying to put the squeeze on. But nothing persuades Declan. And when this little showdown has abated, and he gives up – which after nine or ten exchanges he does, usually – he invariably storms off in a huff, usually grumbling some version of, “Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine!” He’s had it up to here with Ukraine.
Now, the juggling act that I am attempting pales compared to that faced by moms who are raising kids alone; or who struggle to provide for families on a minimum wage that is not a livable wage [Applause]; or who risk losing their jobs if they have to stay home to care for a sick child. But I share these stories because – even with all the support that I am lucky enough to have – the balancing is hard and making that visible might be useful to somebody somewhere.
Of course, it is not just our personal challenges that we must make visible. There are far bigger and more important problems that we have to shine a bright light on – like the dark chapters of our own nation’s history.
Let me give you one of the most chilling examples. Between 1877 and 1950, nearly 4,000 African Americans were lynched in 12 Southern states, according to a remarkable report released this year by the Equal Justice Initiative. In 1916, a man named Jeff Brown was lynched in Mississippi for accidentally bumping into a white girl while running to catch a train. In 1940, Jessie Thorton was lynched in Alabama for failing to address a white police officer as “Mister.” Many of the lynchings were public spectacles, advertised in advance in newspapers. Vendors hawked popcorn and lemonade. Families had photos taken by the bodies of the victims as souvenirs. In 1893, 10,000 people came to watch the lynching of Henry Smith in Paris, Texas.
One of the most alarming findings of the Equal Justice Initiative report is that there are virtually no public memorials to these killings. South Carolina, which witnessed 164 lynchings during this period, has only a few public markers of where they occurred. But the state has at least 170 memorials to Confederate soldiers of the Civil War.
Fifty years after Selma, and 150 after the end of the Civil War – at a time where there remains such enduring racial inequalities – these sites should not be invisible. We have to stop looking past them. Which is why finding ways to mark more of these sites – as the Equal Justice Initiative plans to do – is such an essential step [Applause].
To memorialize the Holocaust – the most unspeakable atrocity of the 20th century – a German artist named Gunther Denmig began installing what he called stolperstein, or stumbling stones. He placed the tiny, four-inch cubes – which simply note the name, date of birth and, when known, the death of an individual victim – in the ground outside the Holocaust victim’s former home. He started in Cologne, Germany, in 1992, with 250 little stones. Since then, Denmig has laid some 48,000 stolperstein in 18 countries. Any of you who have stumbled upon one knows the impact. The stone telescopes history. In humanizing a single victim – you feel it, if only for a minute, the incomprehensible loss of six million people.
Of course, we cannot limit ourselves to surfacing the dark parts of our past; we must do the same right here in the present. Consider the enduring problem of sexual violence on college campuses [Applause], only a tiny fraction of which is reported by victims. In spite of this problem, we have too often seen colleges and universities falling short of adequately investigating and disciplining perpetrators, and of protecting victims.
And yet – even as we are aware of the seriousness of this problem, it takes a woman picking up a mattress and carrying it around her campus to make people really see it [Applause]. A mattress that a good number of the women in this graduating class have helped carry. And men from Columbia, too.
This challenge of rendering the invisible visible is one I face every day at the United Nations, where the people most directly affected by the policies discussed are often far removed from sight and mind. We talk so often in terms of thousands or even millions of people that it’s easy to lose a sense of what one person is – and why even a single human being’s dignity is so important. So, wherever possible, the United States tries to bring those voices into the debate as a way of sharpening understanding of the human consequences of what can otherwise feel like abstract challenges.
Last September, as the Ebola outbreak was spreading exponentially in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the most dire evidence-based projections suggested more than a million people would be infected if the international community failed to mount a swift and massive response. Yet most countries were doing far too little to stop the outbreak. Worse, several countries in the region were sealing their borders out of fear, preventing crucial aid from reaching those in need.
So the United States convened the first-ever emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on a public health crisis – and instead of simply having UN officials present statistics and charts, we arranged for a video link from the Security Council to the capital of Liberia, where a 38-year-old healthcare worker named Jackson Naimah was asked to describe what was happening in his country. Jackson, who was working at Médecins Sans Frontières Ebola clinic, described people dying outside the gates because the clinic was overflowing and had run out of beds to take more patients. He described having to turn away a boy with all the symptoms of the virus, whose father had died a week earlier, and he recalled thinking, “This boy is going to take a taxi, and he is going to go home to his family, and he will infect them.” He told the diplomats crammed into the UN chamber: “I feel that the future of my country is hanging in the balance. If the international community does not stand up, we will all be wiped out.”
As Jackson spoke, you could hear a pin drop in the Security Council. People who had not really seen Ebola up to that time were forced to grapple with its monstrous efficiency. And you could feel the momentum in the room shift as, one by one, countries spoke with a greater sense of urgency about the need to stand up rather than stand by.
Today, we haven’t just bent the curve of the epidemic, we are closing in on ending it [Applause]. And we try, we try, to seize every chance we have to bring voices like Jackson’s into discussions at the United Nations. And, when a conflict or a prison cell or some other barrier prevents these individuals from speaking for themselves, we try to describe their experiences in a way that others will hear.
Now, I have talked about what it will mean to secure lasting equality – slaying the bats in our bat caves; taking on the struggles of others seeking dignity; and using a range of means – from mattresses to human contact – to make the invisible visible.
This brings me to my last point, and arguably the simplest. True equality is going to require showing – not telling, but showing – people that change is possible.
Let me tell you what other countries see today when they look at the United States delegation to the UN. They see a woman Permanent Representative – one of only 37 women permanent representatives out of 193 ambassadors to the UN – they also see two other women Ambassadors for the United States, Michele Sison and Isobel Coleman, all three of us working mothers. And when the General Assembly is held each September, the world sees the U.S. delegation led by an African-American man – our President. What we look like to the world matters. Because we know, empirically, that people’s belief systems and biases can be shifted dramatically by what they see.
In West Bengal, India, for example, a political affirmative action program reserved spots for women in village governments. Within seven years, a study found, men’s individual biases against the capacity of women leaders almost fully disappeared; and women have become more likely to run for – and win – local seats. Parents have developed higher aspirations for their daughters, and girls’ expectations have increased for themselves.
I can tell you it’s true personally, as well. As a girl growing up in Ireland – where my family lived until I was nine – I watched my mother attend medical school while playing world-class squash and caring for me and my kid brother. I also learned from the stories my mother and father, Dr. Vera Delaney and Edmund Bourke – both kidney doctors – brought home about their patients. I loved the way they saw their patients not as a spreadsheet of symptoms and diseases, but as individuals. And I learned from the way they knew how to listen to them, and glean the details that others may have missed.
There is no question in my mind that growing up with my mother as my model gave me the confidence – or the hubris – to think that covering the women’s volleyball team for my college newspaper was experience enough to send me to the Balkans to become a war correspondent. Thanks, Mom [Laughter]. And there’s no question that I took from both my parents that – in work, in friendship, in love – we must understand where people around us are coming from, what motivates them, what saddens them, what inspires them, and how they got where they are.
And it’s worth remembering to the extent to which we – any of us here – see the world the way we do; make it to the heights we reach; and experience days of such great pride like this one – it’s worth remembering that all of that starts with the people we saw first. When you hug them after this, thank them for that. And you can give them a round of applause now, too [Applause].
As I’m wrapping up, I want to leave you with one last image. As you know, there are few places where women and girls have endured greater hardship – or been less visible – than in Afghanistan. Under Taliban rule, women couldn’t even walk outside without a male relative and a burqa. No girls were allowed to go to school, and no women served in positions of authority. Today, notwithstanding the persistence of the Taliban and its monstrous attacks against civilians, more than three million Afghan girls are in school. Women hold 28 percent of seats in Afghanistan’s Parliament – a higher proportion, I would note, than in the United States Congress [Applause].
And today, women can not only walk outside without a man or a burqa, but members of Afghanistan’s Women’s National Cycling Team are racing down the country’s roads on their bikes. Team members are pinched for resources, but big on courage. Some drivers yell at them and threaten them, but they ride on. One day, a man on a motorcycle reached out and tried to grab at the captain, causing her to crash and hurt her back. But today she is back on her bike, leading more than 40 other women training with the team.
One of the team members, Malika Yousufi, not only wants to become the first Afghan woman – but the first woman, period – to compete in the Tour de France. She told a reporter, “Nothing will stop us.”
Now, imagine just for a minute, what it must feel like to be a little girl from a rural town in Afghanistan – and to suddenly see those 40 women, in a single file, flying down the road. To see something for the first time that you couldn’t have believed possible. Think about where your mind would go – about the shockwave that image would send through your system. Think what it would allow you to believe possible. You would never be able to think the same way again.
That impact – that is what equality is all about. It is a memorial that forces us to see a dark part of our history. A woman who picks up a mattress to show us a problem we are overlooking. A woman or girl in a classroom, or on a bike, or in the water – clearing a path that otherwise would have seemed closed or unimaginable.
Now it’s your turn to climb on the bike. As Malika said, nothing can stop you. What will you make people see?
Thank you, and congratulations again, Barnard Class of 2015!
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
May 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Good afternoon, President Spar, faculty, trustees, alumni, families and friends of the strong and beautiful Barnard graduates! Congratulations, class of 2015!
Columbia grad Madeleine Albright has said, “It used to be that the only way a woman could truly make her foreign policy views felt was by marrying a diplomat, and then pouring tea on an offending ambassador's lap.” I’m here to tell you that in 2015, we have other options! [Applause].
I’m truly honored to be here, and to be among the amazing women, and men, on this stage, and to be with the amazing class of 2015 – I’m so honored that I invited my parents to your graduation. [Applause] And while we’re at it, let’s give a huge round of applause to all the parents and loved ones in the audience.
Your great school came into existence largely due to the vision of a remarkable woman, Annie Nathan Meyer. Meyer didn’t get the kind of schooling you got, or I got. Her mother kept her home as a small child because she wanted company. Meyer read voraciously, finishing all of Dickens’ books by the age of seven. [Laughter]. Yeah, seriously. When she was eleven, her mother died, and while her father agreed to let her go to school, he was so overprotective that he kept her home whenever there was bad weather.
When Meyer learned about a special college course for women at Columbia University, she set about secretly studying for examinations, which she passed on her first try. When she finally told her father, she later wrote, “He drew me gently and lovingly to him and announced, ‘You will never be married…Men hate intelligent wives.’” Meyer decided to go to Columbia anyway.
It was not what she had hoped. Women were not allowed into lectures; instead, they were given a reading list, a short meeting or two with the professor, and then an exam. When Meyer sat for her first exam, she found the questions were based entirely on the lectures that she had been barred from attending. Feeling what she called a “devastating sense of desolation,” she answered as best she could. And though she passed, she eventually dropped out, and, soon after, started her full-court press to secure the education for women that she had been denied. Four years later, in 1889, as we know, Barnard College – your college – was founded.
As Barnard finishes its 125th school year, it is safe to say that the cause of equality has come a very, very, very long way. But what I want to talk to you about today is how some of the remaining barriers to true equality can, and must, be overcome.
First, true equality will mean not letting our doubts silence our voices.
We live in a time where women have made tremendous strides, particularly here in the United States. And you all know the statistics. Women earn 60 percent of all undergraduate and graduate degrees; hold more than half of all professional-level jobs; and study after study shows that companies employing greater numbers of women outperform their competitors. And you know that, at the end of your four years, you are as well-equipped as any Barnard graduating class to make your mark. So why do you still feel that persistent self-doubt? That fear of making mistakes? And why do those doubts sometimes get in the way of your voices being heard?
I wish I had the answer. Instead, all I can tell you is that we all experience that feeling – even if it’s not obvious on the outside. I have even adopted a name for it – the Bat Cave; it’s that dark place in your head where all the voices tell you every reason you can’t do something.
Let me give you an example. Rewind to August 2008. I am working as a senior advisor on the campaign for then-Senator Barack Obama – who has just earned the Democratic nomination for President. And I find out that I’m pregnant with my first child. Now, I have an amazing husband, and this news – it’s seismic. I am over the moon.
And I tell no one at work. Lots of nods, I bet, back here and up there [Laughter].
I have never gone through this before, and I am worried that if I advertise my blissful state, it will affect how seriously I will be taken by the campaign, and potentially even shut me out of the kind of job that could make an impact. Everything I know of then-Senator Obama and the people around him tells me at the time that this makes zero sense. After all, this is a man who was raised by a single, working mother. A man whose brilliant wife worked while raising two daughters. A man who would go on to demonstrate daily as President his commitment to supporting working moms and dads. But at the time, I am way too deep in the Bat Cave to see any of that.
Eventually, it is my body that tells people the news – not me. And I acquired quite a collection of scarves.
I ended up having two babies while spending four years at the White House, and thereafter still managed to get to serve in my dream job, representing the United States at the United Nations [Applause]. But if I felt the way I did with a boss like mine, I can only imagine how other women feel – the ecstasy of a pregnancy clouded by the fear it could cause severe professional damage.
Last year, when the Ukraine crisis began, I momentarily experienced another version of this anxiety. Russia, a permanent member on the UN Security Council, is trying to lop off part of its neighbor, Ukraine – a clear violation of the rules that the United Nations was created to defend. An urgent UN Security Council session is called on Russia’s attempted takeover of Crimea. I take my seat, and my mind recalls Prague 1968, Budapest 1956, and some epic occasions in the twentieth century when Ambassadors Adlai Stevenson, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Madeleine Albright, and other legends made memorable, forceful interventions at the United Nations on behalf of the United States.
Then it dawns on me: that’s me now! I’m the United States!
Deep in the Bat Cave, I think of the consequences if my response – the United States’ response – is too forceful, or not forceful enough. I think of the overwhelming responsibility that comes with speaking on behalf of America and the ideals we stand for. And I think of the people of Ukraine who are counting on me. And I speak.
The fact is that doubt – and his more lovable big sister, self-awareness – both are more pronounced among women. Turns out Batwoman’s cave often has more square footage than Batman’s.
True equality will not mean shedding our doubts or our self-awareness – but rather not letting them quiet us when we should be speaking up. There are more than enough forces out there doing that without needing our help. And it will mean that, while everyone will have moments of uncertainty – and humility is an especially prized quality – women should not have to worry that if we stumble, it will be more noticed than when men do the same [Applause].
But it is not enough to find our own voices. True equality also requires that we learn to hear, and lift up, the voices of those whom others choose not to hear. This is my second point: You have to teach yourself to see the people and communities who live in society’s blind spots. Of course, everyone should strive to do this. But as women who, even to this day, know what it feels like to be unheard or unseen, we have an additional responsibility. I think the burden of being treated differently is also our strength – because it gives us the capacity to notice when others are treated differently. To see the blind spots.
That includes the discussion of gender identity on campus, which the Barnard community – and particularly your class – has embraced [Applause]. We must see that seemingly simple actions that most of us don’t have to think twice about – the bathroom we walk into; the gender listed on our driver’s licenses; the name people use to address us; the boxes “male” and “female” on a college application – can be a source of profound anguish for others. We must recognize the cruel and hostile treatment that transgender people experience in so many communities, which, according to one study, has contributed to 40 percent of transgender people in the United States attempting suicide during the course of their lives.
We must all work toward the goal of ensuring equal rights for all people – lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. And while we have a very long way to go, I’m extremely proud to work for an administration that has lifted Medicare’s ban on covering gender reassignment surgery, and whose Justice Department has decided to take on cases of discrimination based on an individual’s gender identity, including transgender status, under the Civil Rights Act.
Now again, it is no coincidence that women’s colleges have been among the first to embrace this discussion. Women know what it feels like to have to fight to be part of institutions whose doors should never have been closed to them.
You often hear people say that past generations struggled so that you would not have to. But I say, past generations struggled so you would be free to fight on behalf of someone else.
The idea of seeing the struggles of others around you – whether the other is a gender or an ethnic or religious group, or even an entire nation that usually does not have a voice – is one of the principles that has defined President Obama’s foreign policy. We know that America is stronger, that our policies are more effective, and that the world is better off when America is listening. And that includes listening to countries and communities that often feel invisible to the world’s superpowers.
That is why, when I started as the United States Ambassador to the UN a year and a half ago, I decided to visit as many of the other 192 UN ambassadors as I could, regardless of the size or the geopolitical heft of the country that they represent. By visiting their missions, rather than having them travel to ours, as was common practice, I would be able to see the national art they wanted to showcase, the family photos on their desks, the books that they had carried with them long distances to America. And I could show them America’s respect and our curiosity. So far, I’ve visited 119 countries’ missions. And when I visit, I try [Applause], when I visit I try to put my long list of policy asks aside. Instead, I ask the ambassadors about their upbringings, about how they became diplomats, what they are most proud of about their countries.
True equality will mean not just seeing the unseen, but also finding a way to make invisible problems visible – and this is my third point. I think the contemporary conversation about the challenge that women face in balancing a demanding job with raising a family is important. Women are opening up about how overwhelmed they feel trying to “have it all.” Back in 2013, when I arrived in my job, I was still nursing my one-year-old daughter as I tried to move my family to New York, and find schools for my two kids – and no, I did not enroll my then-four-year-old in a Kaplan course so he could get into a New York pre-school. I had to do all this at the same time, roughly, that the Syrian regime decided to stage massive chemical weapons attacks against its people, horrific atrocities were being committed in the Central African Republic, and a new government was cracking down on the opposition in Egypt. When asked by friends whether I subscribed to “lean in,” I would instead describe my philosophy then as “hang on.” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has put it even better – “lean on.”
While Ambassador, I have spoken in public a fair amount about the ways my six-year-old, my now six-year-old son Declan, interacts with my new life – making visible a version of what goes on behind the scenes in many homes. Like most young kids with their parents, he seems to delight in interrupting me when I’m on the phone. “Mommy,” he says, “Can I ask you something?” I shake my head and I whisper, “I’m on the phone.” He says, “Mommy it’s important.” “I’ll be off in a minute.” “But Mommy, what’s the score of the Nationals game?” he says. I beg him to let me finish the call. But he is insistent. “Mommy, I said it’s important.” And I hold my hand over the phone and say – “Mine too, this is important too” – I may well be talking to the UN Secretary-General, a UN envoy on a crackling phone line from a war zone, or a fellow diplomat that I’m trying to put the squeeze on. But nothing persuades Declan. And when this little showdown has abated, and he gives up – which after nine or ten exchanges he does, usually – he invariably storms off in a huff, usually grumbling some version of, “Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine!” He’s had it up to here with Ukraine.
Now, the juggling act that I am attempting pales compared to that faced by moms who are raising kids alone; or who struggle to provide for families on a minimum wage that is not a livable wage [Applause]; or who risk losing their jobs if they have to stay home to care for a sick child. But I share these stories because – even with all the support that I am lucky enough to have – the balancing is hard and making that visible might be useful to somebody somewhere.
Of course, it is not just our personal challenges that we must make visible. There are far bigger and more important problems that we have to shine a bright light on – like the dark chapters of our own nation’s history.
Let me give you one of the most chilling examples. Between 1877 and 1950, nearly 4,000 African Americans were lynched in 12 Southern states, according to a remarkable report released this year by the Equal Justice Initiative. In 1916, a man named Jeff Brown was lynched in Mississippi for accidentally bumping into a white girl while running to catch a train. In 1940, Jessie Thorton was lynched in Alabama for failing to address a white police officer as “Mister.” Many of the lynchings were public spectacles, advertised in advance in newspapers. Vendors hawked popcorn and lemonade. Families had photos taken by the bodies of the victims as souvenirs. In 1893, 10,000 people came to watch the lynching of Henry Smith in Paris, Texas.
One of the most alarming findings of the Equal Justice Initiative report is that there are virtually no public memorials to these killings. South Carolina, which witnessed 164 lynchings during this period, has only a few public markers of where they occurred. But the state has at least 170 memorials to Confederate soldiers of the Civil War.
Fifty years after Selma, and 150 after the end of the Civil War – at a time where there remains such enduring racial inequalities – these sites should not be invisible. We have to stop looking past them. Which is why finding ways to mark more of these sites – as the Equal Justice Initiative plans to do – is such an essential step [Applause].
To memorialize the Holocaust – the most unspeakable atrocity of the 20th century – a German artist named Gunther Denmig began installing what he called stolperstein, or stumbling stones. He placed the tiny, four-inch cubes – which simply note the name, date of birth and, when known, the death of an individual victim – in the ground outside the Holocaust victim’s former home. He started in Cologne, Germany, in 1992, with 250 little stones. Since then, Denmig has laid some 48,000 stolperstein in 18 countries. Any of you who have stumbled upon one knows the impact. The stone telescopes history. In humanizing a single victim – you feel it, if only for a minute, the incomprehensible loss of six million people.
Of course, we cannot limit ourselves to surfacing the dark parts of our past; we must do the same right here in the present. Consider the enduring problem of sexual violence on college campuses [Applause], only a tiny fraction of which is reported by victims. In spite of this problem, we have too often seen colleges and universities falling short of adequately investigating and disciplining perpetrators, and of protecting victims.
And yet – even as we are aware of the seriousness of this problem, it takes a woman picking up a mattress and carrying it around her campus to make people really see it [Applause]. A mattress that a good number of the women in this graduating class have helped carry. And men from Columbia, too.
This challenge of rendering the invisible visible is one I face every day at the United Nations, where the people most directly affected by the policies discussed are often far removed from sight and mind. We talk so often in terms of thousands or even millions of people that it’s easy to lose a sense of what one person is – and why even a single human being’s dignity is so important. So, wherever possible, the United States tries to bring those voices into the debate as a way of sharpening understanding of the human consequences of what can otherwise feel like abstract challenges.
Last September, as the Ebola outbreak was spreading exponentially in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, the most dire evidence-based projections suggested more than a million people would be infected if the international community failed to mount a swift and massive response. Yet most countries were doing far too little to stop the outbreak. Worse, several countries in the region were sealing their borders out of fear, preventing crucial aid from reaching those in need.
So the United States convened the first-ever emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on a public health crisis – and instead of simply having UN officials present statistics and charts, we arranged for a video link from the Security Council to the capital of Liberia, where a 38-year-old healthcare worker named Jackson Naimah was asked to describe what was happening in his country. Jackson, who was working at Médecins Sans Frontières Ebola clinic, described people dying outside the gates because the clinic was overflowing and had run out of beds to take more patients. He described having to turn away a boy with all the symptoms of the virus, whose father had died a week earlier, and he recalled thinking, “This boy is going to take a taxi, and he is going to go home to his family, and he will infect them.” He told the diplomats crammed into the UN chamber: “I feel that the future of my country is hanging in the balance. If the international community does not stand up, we will all be wiped out.”
As Jackson spoke, you could hear a pin drop in the Security Council. People who had not really seen Ebola up to that time were forced to grapple with its monstrous efficiency. And you could feel the momentum in the room shift as, one by one, countries spoke with a greater sense of urgency about the need to stand up rather than stand by.
Today, we haven’t just bent the curve of the epidemic, we are closing in on ending it [Applause]. And we try, we try, to seize every chance we have to bring voices like Jackson’s into discussions at the United Nations. And, when a conflict or a prison cell or some other barrier prevents these individuals from speaking for themselves, we try to describe their experiences in a way that others will hear.
Now, I have talked about what it will mean to secure lasting equality – slaying the bats in our bat caves; taking on the struggles of others seeking dignity; and using a range of means – from mattresses to human contact – to make the invisible visible.
This brings me to my last point, and arguably the simplest. True equality is going to require showing – not telling, but showing – people that change is possible.
Let me tell you what other countries see today when they look at the United States delegation to the UN. They see a woman Permanent Representative – one of only 37 women permanent representatives out of 193 ambassadors to the UN – they also see two other women Ambassadors for the United States, Michele Sison and Isobel Coleman, all three of us working mothers. And when the General Assembly is held each September, the world sees the U.S. delegation led by an African-American man – our President. What we look like to the world matters. Because we know, empirically, that people’s belief systems and biases can be shifted dramatically by what they see.
In West Bengal, India, for example, a political affirmative action program reserved spots for women in village governments. Within seven years, a study found, men’s individual biases against the capacity of women leaders almost fully disappeared; and women have become more likely to run for – and win – local seats. Parents have developed higher aspirations for their daughters, and girls’ expectations have increased for themselves.
I can tell you it’s true personally, as well. As a girl growing up in Ireland – where my family lived until I was nine – I watched my mother attend medical school while playing world-class squash and caring for me and my kid brother. I also learned from the stories my mother and father, Dr. Vera Delaney and Edmund Bourke – both kidney doctors – brought home about their patients. I loved the way they saw their patients not as a spreadsheet of symptoms and diseases, but as individuals. And I learned from the way they knew how to listen to them, and glean the details that others may have missed.
There is no question in my mind that growing up with my mother as my model gave me the confidence – or the hubris – to think that covering the women’s volleyball team for my college newspaper was experience enough to send me to the Balkans to become a war correspondent. Thanks, Mom [Laughter]. And there’s no question that I took from both my parents that – in work, in friendship, in love – we must understand where people around us are coming from, what motivates them, what saddens them, what inspires them, and how they got where they are.
And it’s worth remembering to the extent to which we – any of us here – see the world the way we do; make it to the heights we reach; and experience days of such great pride like this one – it’s worth remembering that all of that starts with the people we saw first. When you hug them after this, thank them for that. And you can give them a round of applause now, too [Applause].
As I’m wrapping up, I want to leave you with one last image. As you know, there are few places where women and girls have endured greater hardship – or been less visible – than in Afghanistan. Under Taliban rule, women couldn’t even walk outside without a male relative and a burqa. No girls were allowed to go to school, and no women served in positions of authority. Today, notwithstanding the persistence of the Taliban and its monstrous attacks against civilians, more than three million Afghan girls are in school. Women hold 28 percent of seats in Afghanistan’s Parliament – a higher proportion, I would note, than in the United States Congress [Applause].
And today, women can not only walk outside without a man or a burqa, but members of Afghanistan’s Women’s National Cycling Team are racing down the country’s roads on their bikes. Team members are pinched for resources, but big on courage. Some drivers yell at them and threaten them, but they ride on. One day, a man on a motorcycle reached out and tried to grab at the captain, causing her to crash and hurt her back. But today she is back on her bike, leading more than 40 other women training with the team.
One of the team members, Malika Yousufi, not only wants to become the first Afghan woman – but the first woman, period – to compete in the Tour de France. She told a reporter, “Nothing will stop us.”
Now, imagine just for a minute, what it must feel like to be a little girl from a rural town in Afghanistan – and to suddenly see those 40 women, in a single file, flying down the road. To see something for the first time that you couldn’t have believed possible. Think about where your mind would go – about the shockwave that image would send through your system. Think what it would allow you to believe possible. You would never be able to think the same way again.
That impact – that is what equality is all about. It is a memorial that forces us to see a dark part of our history. A woman who picks up a mattress to show us a problem we are overlooking. A woman or girl in a classroom, or on a bike, or in the water – clearing a path that otherwise would have seemed closed or unimaginable.
Now it’s your turn to climb on the bike. As Malika said, nothing can stop you. What will you make people see?
Thank you, and congratulations again, Barnard Class of 2015!
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