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Up To Date

Ann Wright: Soldier, Diplomat, Activist

Robert Shetterly
/
Americans Who Tell The Truth

Ann Wright by her own admission spent virtually her entire adult life working for the U.S. federal government.

First as a soldier, achieving the rank of colonel by the time she retired, then as a diplomat at embassies in Nicaragua, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Somalia and elsewhere.  So, it was astonishing when in March of 2003 Wright became one of three diplomats to resign over America's impending invasion of Iraq and take up a third career as an anti-war activist .

In the second part of Monday's Up to Date, Col. Wright talks with Steve Kraske about her decision and her work in the years since including her participation in the flotilla to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, her opposition to the continued development of nuclear weapons by the U.S., and its use of drones for assassinations and bombing runs in central Asia.

COMING UP:  Former diplomat Col. Ann Wright (ret.)  delivers the Cockefair Lecture  "Striking Out Abroad: Drones and the Risks of U.S. Foreign Policy" on Monday, February 20 at 7:30 p.m. at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, 4501 Walnut, Kansas City, Mo.  Free and open to the public, the talk is sponsored by UMKC's Carolyn Benton Cockefair Chair in Continuing Education and All Souls Unitarian Church.

Col. Ann Wright served 29 years in the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserves before retiring.  She then went on to work for 16 years in the State Department with appointments to embassies in Nicaragua, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Somalia and elsewhere. In 1997 she received a State Department Award for Heroism for her work evacuating civilians from the civil war in Sierra Leone.  Wright served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S.Embassy in Sierra Leone, a post she also held in Afghanistan.  She is a co-author of the book "Dissent: Voices of Conscience."  She frequently lectures on foreign policy issues and appeared in the documentary "Uncovered: The Truth about the Iraq War."

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When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
As senior producer of Up To Date, I want our listeners to hear familiar and new voices that shine light on the issues and challenges facing the myriad communities KCUR serves, and to expose our audiences to the wonderful and the creative in the Kansas City area. Just as important to me is an obligation to mentor the next generation of producers to ensure that the important conversations continue. Reach me at alexanderdk@kcur.org.
Stephen Steigman is director of Classical KC. You can email him at Stephen.Steigman@classicalkc.org.