Ambassador Sylvia Stanfield: U.S.-China Foreign Policy and the Importance of BPIA
President Biden declared at the Munich Security Conference on February 19, 2021 that “America is Back” and that he was concerned by China’s human rights record and unfair trade practices. However, will the success of U.S. foreign policy in China depend on the Biden Administration’s ability to quickly resolve racial injustice and inequality at home? How urgent is it for the Biden Administration to uproot systematic racism and white supremacy in order to retake its role as leader of the free world? What role will Black American diplomats play in advancing America’s democratic ideals abroad? Join Alexanderia Haidara, Co-Host of Global Take, as we discuss these pressing global issues with Ambassador Sylvia Gaye Stanfield, President of Black Professionals in International Affairs.
About Ambassador Sylvia Gaye Stanfield
Ambassador Sylvia Gaye Stanfield was the U.S. Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam from 1999-2002 and a career member of the U.S. Senior Foreign Service. Asia was the focus of much of her 30 plus years with the Foreign Service. Her first overseas assignment was with the then American Embassy in Taipei, Taiwan. As a political track Chinese language officer, she had postings with the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong, the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, and the American Institute in Taiwan in Taipei. She served on the State Department’s “China desk” at the time of the normalization of U.S. relations with the People’s Republic of China and later headed the Office of Taiwan Coordination Affairs. She was Director of Australian and New Zealand Affairs prior to serving as Charge d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Wellington, New Zealand. She was Diplomat-in-Residence at Florida A&M University and at Spelman College before serving as Senior Advisor for Mentoring Coordination at the Department of State.
Along with continuing involvement in mentoring activities, she is the President of Black Professionals in International Affairs (BPIA) – an organization founded in 1989 to increase African-Americans’ interest and involvement in international affairs, and a member of the Association of Black American Ambassadors executive committee. A native Texan, she earned a B.A. degree in intercultural studies from Western College for Women in Oxford, Ohio. While an East West Center grantee, she received a M.A. degree in Asian Studies from the University of Hawaii and continued her studies at the University of Hong Kong School of Oriental Studies and Linguistics.
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